A Funeral Mass for Wayne Pendergraph "Uncle Sam", 59, of Geronimo will be at 11 a.m. on Tuesday, January 28, 2020 at Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church. FR Vuong (Vic) Luong will officiate.
Viewing is until Tuesday, January 27, 2020 at Lawton Ritter Gray Funeral Home.
A special visitation will be held from 6-8 p.m. on Monday, January 27, 2020 at the Funeral Home.
Burial will be at Highland Cemetery following his mass.
Wayne Pendergraph was born Donald Wayne Pendergraph in Altus, OK on August 1, 1960 to Herman and Donnie Pendergraph. He lived in and was raised in Snyder, OK. He graduated from Snyder High School in 1978. Wayne was a heck of a baseball player and was always a fierce competitor in games and in life. After graduating high school, Wayne attended college at both Altus Jr. College and Cameron University. He was a few hours away from a criminal justice degree. Can you imagine him as a police officer or lawyer? Life pulled Wayne in another direction. While he was out pounding the streets of Snyder, Altus, and Lawton selling his firewood, he was also prowling those streets for a single school teacher. He found her, thanks to a dear old friend. Wayne and Linda Renschen went on a blind date in 1981 and they married in 1984. Wayne and Linda remained true, faithful and devoted lovers for 35 years, 9 months, 19 days, and 4 hours. To their union three children were reared.
Wayne is survived by his wife, Linda of the home; his sons: Thomas Pendergraph and Richard Pendergraph & his wife Jessica; his daughter: Emma-Leigh Robertson & her husband Adam and his grandchildren: Roye Thomas Pendergraph-Martinez, William Karl Pendergraph and Alyssa Leigh Robertson.
Wayne was a local businessman in Lawton. In 1989, he established Uncle Sam's Pawn & Guns. He later started Uncle Sam's Cars in 2006. He also owned a home construction, remodeling & framing business. Wayne retired in 2018, but continued his entrepreneur adventures until the day he died.
He was a kind hearted and generous man; he provided food, clothing, shelter, and spending money to hundreds of people.
Wayne loved his life and at the age of 52 became a pilot. He flew his Cessna for pure joy and was like a child at Christmas every time he flew. When he disappeared into the sky; Linda would panic and then about 2 hours or so later he would reappear; putt-putt his way onto the landing strip; and bump-screech-bump-bump to a halt (every pilot's wife knows landing is just a "controlled crash!"). If you arm-wrestled Wayne, you lost. If you pitched quarters with him, you threw until he won. If you knew Wayne as greedy, you had tried to rip him off! If you knew Wayne as cheap, you were selling him something. If you saw Wayne as King-Midas, you knew his work ethic. If you knew Wayne as a "work for what you get" or "trust no-one", you loved him. If you did not know Wayne, well then we are sorry for your loss.
Wayne took his final flight into the wild blue yonder on January 19, 2020 never to return to the loves of his life ,but your prayers are touching us every day and we will be together again one day.
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