William A. Sage, Sr.

Sage ~ William A. Sage, Sr (Bill), age 91 was born on August 4, 1931 to Eugene and Lucille Sage in Kansas City, Missouri.  He was the youngest of four children.  His father, mother, two brothers (Eugene and Calvin Sage) and his sister (Ellen Williams) preceded him in death.

He attended Kansas City, Missouri Public Schools and graduated from R.T. Coles High School. He was a member of the Boy Scouts of America for many years and earned the highest rank, Eagle Scout. He earned 21 merit badges and was also a member of the Tribe of Mic-O-Say. Later, he became a Scoutmaster for several Boy Scout troops.

William served in the Air Force for four years from 1952-1956.  He was stationed in Germany and loved to tell stories about his time there.  After returning from the service, he worked at the United States Post Office and held many positions there for thirty-eight years. He retired as a transfer clerk.

He was a long-time member of Ward Chapel AME Church until he relocated to Jacksonville, Florida.  While at Ward Chapel he served as president of the choir and was honored as Man of the Year. Once in Jacksonville, he joined Bethel Baptist Institutional Church.  He faithfully sang in the choir at both churches as well as the James Cleveland Workshop Choir and the UMKC Civic Chorus.

 In 1966, he met and married Norma J. Diggs and to that union Vinita and William Jr. were born.  In 2000, he met and married Mary Craddock and moved to Jacksonville, Florida.

William was a member of the Shriners and Blue Valley Lodge #64 for over 40 years.  He also served as Worshipful Master in 1978.

He leaves to cherish his memory, his wife Mary Craddock Sage (Jacksonville, FL) and the Craddock (Mary) and Lemon (Mary) families, his children, Vinita Sage-McGhee and William Sage, Jr., (both of Atlanta, GA), his grandchildren, Amanda McGhee (Olathe, KS), Alysia McGhee, Atiya Riley, Jalen Sage and Joshua Sage (all of Atlanta, GA), four great grandchildren and a host of nieces, nephews, cousins and other family members and longtime friends. 

Home going Services 11:00 AM Saturday, September 3, 2022, at The Bethel Church, 215 Bethel Baptist Street, Jacksonville, Florida. Live streaming: TheBethelExperience.com

Internment 11:00 AM Thursday, September 8, 2022, at Leavenworth National Cemetery, 150 Muncie Road, Leavenworth, Kansas.

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