Inducted: 2011
LARRY R. WADE (1939-2011) joined the staff of the Elk City Daily News as a cub reporter at age 13. He became co-publisher with his father in 1966 and publisher when his father died in 1972. He graduated from the University of Oklahoma School of Journalism in 1961 where he served as editor of the Oklahoma Daily. He received the school’s Benefactor Award, served on the executive board of the OU Alumni Association, and is a longtime member and served as chairman of the OU Board of Regents. He served on many Oklahoma Press Association committees and was OPA president in 1983. He received the OPA’s highest honor, the Milt Phillips Award in 1995. Active in the community, he’s been city commissioner and mayor, president of the chamber of commerce, United Fund and Kiwanis Club. He’s the founder of the Elk City Foundation and is a member of the Western Oklahoma Hall of Fame.
