John Grady Walls' Obituary
After fighting an unwinnable battle with multiple-myeloma cancer, John Grady Walls born at the Florence Nightingale Maternity Hospital in Dallas, Texas on December 9, 1958, died on January 6, 2015 in Dallas, Texas at the age of 56. He leaves behind former wife Cynthia Walls; two daughters, Madelaine Snodgrass and Bronwyn Walls, son-in-law Patrick Snodgrass and two grandchildren, Gema and Grady Lee Snodgrass all of Dallas, Texas. Grady’s older siblings left behind are, Cynthia Warbritton, Kimberly Ketola, and Robert Allen Walls, Jr. Grady was predeceased by his father Robert Walls and mother Vera Adams. He grew up in a large, loving family with two sisters and two brothers. He loved to play games with his brothers and practically lived outdoors in the frigid Minnesota winters playing hockey from sunup to sunset while not in school. After graduating from Wayzata Senior High School in 1977, Grady joined the Army and served honorably including two years of foreign service in Stuttgart, Germany. While serving in Germany alongside his brother Rob, Grady invited his mother to come and tour Europe. Grady took great pleasure in his mother’s “trip of her life” and attendant memories as they toured Germany, Austria, Italy and Switzerland. After his military service Grady attended North Texas State University where he received a Bachelor of Arts in Communications in 1986 and received academic recognition on the Academic Honor Roll and Dean’s List. Grady married classmate Cynthia Zurbriggen. After graduation, they settled in Garland, Texas, where Grady had accepted a position with the Muscular Dystrophy Association. Grady was the consummate professional throughout his career and achieved remarkable results in the service of others. One of his crowning achievements was the role he played in the near eradication of childhood leukemia while serving as the Director of Leukemia and Lymphoma Society – Dallas Chapter. In this role Grady raised millions of dollars through innovative programs that went to fund the vital research required to cure childhood leukemia while at the same time visiting countless afflicted children and their families and providing them with hope and details of the Society’s efforts. One particular program that Grady spearheaded and was very proud of is the wildly successful “Team in Training” program that continues to this day and has raised millions of dollars to combat Leukemia and Lymphoma diseases. After excelling in distributing Castrol petroleum products in New Orleans, Grady’s entrepreneurial spirit drove him to establish a highly successful hospitality company specializing in industrial cleaning. As throughout his life Grady was often called upon to “parachute in” and achieve the unachievable against all odds. This was the case when the National D-Day Museum was scheduled to open but had many serious issues that threatened the postponement of opening day. Grady was called upon at the last minute and worked round the clock to resolve the issues and the museum opened on schedule. Stephen E. Ambrose, the noted historian, thanked Grady with the following inscription, “For Grady Walls – With thanks for helping make the National D-Day Museum come alive,” New Orleans, June 6, 2000. Not long after this Grady was dealt the near knock-out punch of Hurricane Katrina. The impact to his life and family was devastating. Besides losing his business and home the hurricane also washed away the Tulane scholarship of his eldest daughter, Madelaine. Grady relocated to Dallas and took many difficult years to get back to normal during which time he remained focused on the education of his youngest daughter Bronwyn while ensuring and supporting Madelaine’s graduation from the University of North Texas. Grady was able to put her first in all things and saw to it that she enrolled in the prestigious Ursuline Academy of Dallas. After her graduation from Ursuline, Grady was almost back to normal when he was diagnosed with terminal cancer in December of 2012. In spite of a life expectancy of 24 months, he remained dedicated to supporting Bronwyn’s completion of her education at the University of Texas. He remained a brave, iron-willed man, even throughout his final months and sadly fell short of one semester of seeing Bronwyn’s graduation in May of 2015. Grady considered his life’s greatest accomplishment the quality education provided for his daughters. Memorial Service 9:15 January 13 at St. Thomas Acquinas, Dallas; internment at the Dallas – Fort Worth National Cemetery. Funeral arrangements have been entrusted to Restland Funeral Home and Memorial Park, 13005 Greenville Avenue, Dallas, TX 75243. In lieu of flowers, please send a donation to The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.
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