Philip H. Wade

Doctor Philip Wade, 69, of Lyme, N.H., passed away peacefully on Tuesday, June 11, 2013, in the arms of his loving wife, Barbara. Phil was endeared by many-his family, community, friends, students, and colleagues alike. His relationships intersected concentrically-a tribute to his likeable qualities, character and professionalism-as friends were often colleagues and family members considered friends. Phil's humor, candor, and intellectual curiosity will be sorely missed.

Phil was born in St. Louis, Mo. and grew up in Connecticut. He attended The Choate School in Wallingford, Conn., where he was active in band and orchestra. Phil graduated from Dartmouth College in 1966, earning an AB in Biology. In 1970, Phil graduated from Harvard Medical School, which started his long career in medicine. Phil served as a physician for over 30 years, including 25 years for Harvard Vanguard Medical Associates (in Cambridge, Mass.) and five years as a primary care physician for Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center in Lyme. Most recently, Phil served as Assistant Professor of Medicine at Dartmouth Medical School, where he was nominated for Dartmouth Medical School’s Excellence in Education and Distinguished Small Group Leader Awards in 2012. Phil was also actively involved with the VT/NH Visiting Nurses Association and Hospice, recently serving as a board member and committee chairman.

Phil enjoyed traveling with his wife, his dear friends, and his family, making many trips to Europe and warm island destinations over the years. Summer vacations were often spent on the coast of Maine, where his family and friends wove a tapestry of memories, served up with steamed lobster and large helpings of blueberry pie and ice cream. New York City was a special place for Phil, and he went there often, spending many meaningful and impressionable years of his youth and vacationing adult life, taking in the bounties of museums, theaters, concert performances and city life.

Phil was a master in the art of family dining room conversations, which he casually led, introducing topics related to politics, medicine, books, music, television, Wade family legends, or even kitchen appliances. His family members actively participated in this banter, finishing each other’s sentences, inserting their own thoughts and witty remarks, while passing the gravy and complimenting each other on another perfect meal. If a conversational topic began showing signs of wear, Phil would seamlessly introduce a new thought to consider and off they would go, laughing, thinking and remembering. Phil honed this craft during 40 years of family dinners in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Vermont.

Phil enjoyed a nice cup of coffee poured into a good, hardy mug. He consumed his coffee while digesting the news of the world and contemplating the human condition while sitting in a cafe, or in his kitchen, or on his porch in Lyme. Phil enjoyed reading novels by American novelists including Ernest Hemingway, Herman Melville, and John Irving, most recently rereading F. Scott Fitzgerald’s classic, The Great Gatsby. Phil also enjoyed reading poetry, often reflecting on his favorite works by T.S. Eliot. Phil’s appreciation of books, music, and art may have been eclipsed only by his appreciation for technology-he was a Mac guy-and he often pursued and purchased the latest version of each and every device.

But most of all, and most importantly, Phil loved his family and loved his wife, Barbara, and the life they had crafted together, over 47 years of marriage. He was proud of his family, proud of what they had accomplished together and proud of what they had accomplished as individuals. These aspirations and accomplishments, the humor, and reciprocal nature of his family’s love, will live on forever.

Phil leaves behind his wife, Barbara, of Lyme; his brother, Stephen, of Virginia; three daughters, Dr. Julie Wade, of Hinesburg, Vt., Amanda Yonkman, of Waterbury, Vt., and Anne Peterson, of Richmond, Vt.; as well as six grandchildren; three nieces; and many lifelong friends. He was predeceased by his father, Leo J. Wade and mother Hermoine Hamel Wade.

In lieu of flowers, please send memorial contributions to the Mary Hitchcock Memorial Hospital at Dartmouth-Hitchcock or The American Cancer Society.

A memorial service honoring Phil’s life will be held later this summer at a time and date to be determined.

From the Valley News website: vnews.com, posted 6/16/13.