Adrian Wages

Adrian Wages left this Earth to join his Lord, and his loved ones gone before him in heaven on a bright sunny day, July 15. He was born on April 6, 1958, and graced his family and friends for 60 wonderful, remarkable years. His time on this planet was full of joy, love, laughter and hard work. He will be dearly missed by all who knew him, and had been blessed by his infectious grin, and only slightly twisted sense of humor.

Adrian was born and raised in Bonners Ferry, Idaho. He was born the third of five children of the late J.B. Wages, and his wife Mary Jim. He had two older brothers, Larry and Jay; one little sister, Jeannie; and his youngest sibling, brother Theron. To hear him tell it, Adrian enjoyed an idyllic childhood filled with family, adventures and animals, and of course weapons. One of his greatest joys was spending time with his grandparents Pop, and Gummy, (Jim and Katie Bell Ashburn) at their family farm in the Curly Creek area. A farm that later in life he would come to own, treasure and share with his own children and grandchildren.

Adrian attended Valley View Elementary School, and graduated from Bonners Ferry High School in 1976. He spent a short time working in a logging camp in Alaska, then returned to Bonners and went to work at the family business, J.B.’s Tire and Automotive.

He married the love of his life Marlene Dinning in 1979. They purchased a place in Moravia and set about building a life together. (It was a single-wide trailer, which he would say later that the best thing about it was that the previous owner had left behind a perfectly good bowling shirt, and if “you’re going to pay $15,000 for a house, you better get something extra.”) They were aptly paired for the task as they shared many common interests including horses, hunting, fishing, and almost anything to do with getting outdoors. This couple’s marriage tool box was chocked full. Their faith being at the top of that tool box was followed by prerequisites for a healthy family, Love, Patience and Understanding. Three healthy beautiful children joined them over the next several years that would become the joy of the years to follow.

Adrian had a knack for parenthood, and his love of ALL things outdoors was passed lovingly onto Aaron, Jamie and Travis who will all cherish the many, many memories of moments afield. Hunting, fishing or camping in “the burb.” These were just some of the adventures they shared. There was also horseback riding, motorcycle riding and skeet shooting, and of course swimming and playing in Bonner Lake.

As years rolled by, each of these children grew, found love and married expanding the family unit. First Jamie, who married Tim Fulton, then Travis took Danielle McGrath to be his wife, and finally Aaron found love and marriage in the form of Chelsea Koehn in 2017. Jamie and Tim brought forth four children, Ally, Timmy, Hunter and Aspen. Travis and Danielle provided two with Wyatt and Harper, and Adrian was transformed to his new role in life… that of being a grandfather, or Papa as he came to be known by the little ones. This was a role that Adrian was seemingly born for. He LOVED his little ones, and he was not afraid to show it. He spent many hours teaching, teasing, playing with, and just generally loving his grandkids. He was always eager and willing to share his love for the outdoors, and often took them riding, fishing, hunting and camping just as he had their parents before them.

Even with all this family to occupy his time and attention, Adrian still maintained a place for special friends and community. His co-workers have always held a special place, as he felt it was his sacred duty to “keep them on their toes,” which leads back to my comment earlier about his slightly twisted sense of humor. He really loved few things more than pulling off the ultimate practical joke on an unsuspecting co-worker. And they loved him for it.

Adrian was a member of First Baptist Church for all his life. He was also actively involved in community groups like the Sportsman Association, RMEF, NRA, Ducks Unlimited and Pheasants Forever. With his passing Adrian leaves an enormous hole for his slew of family and friends to fill. We, his adoring family will all struggle for a long while to come, as even though we understand that he is now in Glory, the selfishness in each of us wishes he was still here. We will try to fill the hole with love, laughter and memories just as Adrian would have wanted, and bide our time until the day when we are reunited to once again bask in the glow of his smile.

Adrian Wages is preceded in death by his beloved father, J.B. Wages; both sets of grandparents; Marlene’s father, Ray Dinning and his nephew, Jason Wages.

He is survived by his loving wife of nearly 40 years, Marlene; his children and grandchildren (named above); and almost uncountable in-laws, out-laws, and various other relatives and friends whom room and memory prevent listing.

He will be Sorely missed.

Memorial service were held on Saturday, July 21, 2018, at First Baptist Church in Bonners Ferry.

The family suggests memorials can be made to Boundary Search and Dive Rescue.