John Robert Wade

Dr. John Robert Wade, a true man of the world, passed away Saturday, July 14, 2023, surrounded by family and friends, of which he had many from all walks of life. He collected friends everywhere he went and never let them go. He was adventurous and inventive. A lover of music and the outdoors. John grew up all over the South to parents Harriet and Robert “Bob” Wade with sisters Lynn and Jama. The family settled in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, where John graduated from Bay High in 1970. He then went on to graduate from Southeastern Louisiana University, briefly serve in the Merchant Marines, travel the world, and eventually graduate from veterinary school at LSU in Baton Rouge. His love of animals led him to open Northlake Veterinary Hospital on the Northshore where he was a beloved veterinarian and an outstanding surgeon. But, as would become a theme in John’s life, the siren’s call of new opportunity beckoned him and he sold his veterinary practice to Dr. Craig Guidry, who would become a trusted and loyal friend for the rest of his life. John then teamed up with his cousin Reid Green and founded Pacesetter, an ostrich breeding facility, with the help of Randall Thompson. After taking Pacesetter public, traveling the world educating others on ostrich rearing, and becoming an industry leader, John was ready to move on to the next adventures which included starting a revolutionary fiber cable company PrimeLink. But John’s love of animals pulled him back to the veterinary field, this time founding MicroChip ID Systems with his close friend and confidante Jean Anne Mayhall. John and Jean Anne built MicroChip ID to offer the premiere microchip identification systems for all animals, from family pets to commercial breeders. John loved his employees fiercely with some of them being under his employ for decades. He finally retired in August of 2022 and bought a motor home with his partner of almost 20 years, Jan Benitez, with the intention of spending his time traveling the country. Unfortunately, these plans were cut short when he was diagnosed with lung cancer in February 2023. John fought the cancer for as long as he could before he succumbed to the disease 5 months later. John is preceded in death by his parents Robert “Bob” Wade and Harriet Green Wade, and lifelong friends Donnie Caldwell and Jerry “Duff” Durrough. John is survived by partner Jan Benitez, sisters Lynn (Rene) Vicknair and Jama Wade O’Rourke; niece Jama (Zac) Howell; nephews John Michael O’Rourke and Bailey Wade O’Rourke; great nephews John Steven Howell and William Martin Howell; cousins Reid (Lisa) Green, Wade Green, and Wesley Green, and numerous Wade cousins; and close friends that he considered family Dr. Craig Guidry, Jean Anne Mayhall, Randall Thompson, Michael Mayhall, Sr, Michael Mayhall, Jr, Brian Mayhall, and Randy Meyers. There will be no services held at this time. The family asks donations be made in John’s name to Dose of the Coast, a local nonprofit that organizes charter boat trips along the Gulf Coast for terminally ill patients and special needs children. Please Share a Memory on the Tribute Wall at www.ejfieldingfh.com.

John Robert Wade

March 27, 1952 - July 15, 2023