Ward Hall

Edward “Ward” Allen Hall (1954-2025)

Edward “Ward” Allen Hall, born on April 16, 1954, in Des Moines, Iowa, passed away peacefully on January 13, 2025, in Fort Wayne, Indiana. He was 70 years old. 

Ward Hall was born to Argie and Maxine Hall. His family also included older sister Linn and younger sister Barbara. Before entering school, his family moved to a farm near Ankeny, Iowa. At a young age, he gave his life to Christ and followed through with his commitment to attending and being active in the Bondurant Federated Church. Summers were filled with volunteering at a summer camp and working in the hay fields and the local grain elevator. 

Ward graduated from Iowa State University in 1976 with a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering and the University of Missouri - Rolla, in 1987 with a Master of Science in Electrical Engineering. After graduating from Iowa State, he started his career at McDonnell Douglas Astronautics Corporation in Radio Frequency System and Antenna Design in St Louis, Missouri. At this point, he received a top-secret security clearance while working on cruise and harpoon missile guidance projects for the Department of Defense. 
In 1979, while attending First Baptist Church of Ferguson, he met his future wife, Linda Lower. They married on February 14, 1981. Both were active in their church and started their family of three daughters while in St. Louis. 

After 19 years at McDonnell Douglas working in national defense, he switched career paths and joined Thomson Consumer Electronics in a commercial capacity as a radio frequency group manager in Carmel, Indiana. 

While living in Carmel, he applied his technical expertise by serving at Grace Community Church on the tech team. After moving to Fort Wayne, Indiana in 2002, he also served on the tech team at Emmanuel Community Church for many years. 

He continued his career with the ITT Corporation in the Space Systems Division where he led a Radio Frequency group in the development of a next-generation, space-based receiver system. Subsequently, Ward began work for Exelis Incorporation in 2012 as a Staff Scientist supporting the development of broadband communications standards for the FAA. Ward finished his professional career with the Harris Corporation as a Systems Engineer and developed instrumentation for the NASA Joint Polar Satellite System. Over the course of his career, Ward was awarded ten different patents and received honors as the 1995 Missouri Inventor of the Year.

Ward retired in April 2019 but continued to work as a technical consultant in various capacities. After retirement, he volunteered at the Fort Wayne Children’s Zoo where he repaired their data collection system that helped in research of migratory animals. In 2023, he joined the Emmanuel Community Church mission trip to Colombia where he assisted with optometry care. 

As a young child, he had a strong interest in electronics and outer space. This fueled a passion for HAM radio that he carried with him throughout his life. In his early teens, he received his HAM radio operator’s license. Since then, he has talked to HAM radio operators in every country, excluding North Korea. He competed in numerous HAM radio competitions, including Summits on the Air. This was the perfect coupling of his interest in radio and his passion for hiking. Hiking led him to 26 different National Parks and various family trips around the country. Camping, backpacking, kayaking, and cross-country skiing were his favorite ways to spend time outdoors. He also looked forward to attending the Indy 500 race every year. As an avid St. Louis Cardinals fan, summers were filled with watching their games. 

In December of 2023, Ward was diagnosed with a glioblastoma brain tumor. In the past year, Ward took every opportunity to fight the cancer all while spending valuable time with his family and friends. 

Ward was preceded in death by his father, Argie, and his mother Maxine. Ward is survived by his wife, Linda (Lower) Hall, and three daughters: Meghan (Randy) Smith of Fort Wayne, Ellana (Brian) Robinson of Fort Wayne, and Kara Hall of Seaside, California. Ward also has three granddaughters: Anica Hall, Elsie Smith, and Madeline Robinson. Ward is also survived by two sisters: Linn (Glenn) Felpel of Knoxville, Tennessee and Barbara (Mark) Frederiksen of Colorado Springs, Colorado.

A visitation service will be held on January 17 from 6:00 – 8:00 PM at Emmanuel Community Church (12222 US Highway 24, Fort Wayne).

The funeral service will be held on January 18 from 11:00 AM – 12:00 PM at Emmanuel Community Church. Please send any floral or memorial contributions to Emmanuel Community Church. 

In lieu of flowers, a donation can be made to the Emmanuel Community Church Colombia Missions Ministry. Please note “Colombia Missions” when donating. Alternatively, a donation can be made to the National Parks Foundation at www.give.nationalparks.org.  

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