Lester Theodore Wallace Jr.

Lester Theodore Wallace, Jr., 96, beloved husband, father, grandfather, and friend, passed away peacefully March 29, 2026 under hospice care in Tulsa, Oklahoma, following a day where many members of his large extended family visited and paid tribute to him.

Lester, more affectionately known as LT, was born in 1930 in Maple, Oklahoma to parents Lester Theodore Wallace, Sr. and Edna Mae (Torbett) Wallace. He grew up on a farm as one of eleven children, and he went to a small country school for the first part of his education. He later graduated from high school in Muldrow, Oklahoma.

LT met his one and only sweetheart, U.V. (Gibbons) Wallace, on a bus returning from a basketball game. He walked her home, and they have been together ever since, happily celebrating their 75th wedding anniversary in 2025—and still watching basketball together.

Lester started his career working on the extra board of Missouri Pacific Railroad, before taking a permanent position as a telegrapher at the Sallisaw, Oklahoma depot. While living in Sallisaw, U.V. and Jr. had three daughters—Patricia, Debbie, and Danita. Early in 1964, LT moved his family to Wagoner, Oklahoma to be the Agent/Operator at the local depot. LT loved working for the railroad, and was an intelligent, creative thinker. Several times, he was asked to move into management, but he turned down those opportunities to raise his girls in a small town close to their other family members. After Union Pacific acquired Missouri Pacific, LT stayed at the Wagoner depot until he retired in 1992 with 44 years of service.

Railroading was only one of LT’s interests over the years. While in Sallisaw, he bought and raised cattle on a small farm outside of Muldrow, which he later swapped for a new cattle property outside of Wagoner. He built a house on that land in 1972 and kept that ranch until 1995, when he and U.V. decided to move into town.

LT liked to design and build houses. He built his first house in Sallisaw not long after he and U.V. were married, and every 2-3 years, he built a new one—four houses in total, all on Mary Avenue. After moving to Wagoner, he carefully planned and oversaw the construction of all three of his Wagoner homes to make sure the work was to his standards. In more recent years, Lester served on the Wagoner County Planning Commission, where his attention to detail and knowledge of the community served him well.

Throughout his life, Lester was a very sociable man who liked to stay busy. He made many life-long friends working for the railroad. He loved to get together with friends or family members for camping trips and do a little dirt biking, or enjoy boating and water skiing in the Oklahoma lakes. He liked to be outdoors, and was fascinated by astronomy and the space program. He would often set up a telescope to stargaze from his farm house on the hill. He even used a Sputnik satellite as his cattle brand--LT had quite a sense of humor.

LT’s retirement hobbies included classic car rallies (with his 1966 Mustang or 1957 Chevy), studying the stock market, taking long walks with his labradors Raven and Mokka, and watching football, baseball, and basketball. He liked to do his own home repairs and frequently had a project going, even in his 90’s. During their long life together, LT and U.V. traveled the country from west coast to east coast, and from Florida to Canada and Alaska. LT loved taking road trips, or train trips, to see the countryside and to visit family members.

As life slowed down, he liked to gather with the guys at the local feed store or coffee shop to swap stories. LT was an outstanding story teller with an exceptional memory, and he liked to pass along those memories to others. As he lost most of his siblings, he became the patriarch of a family that included not only his own immediate family, but also his thirty-one nieces and nephews and their children and grandchildren. He was everyone’s life-link to their own family memories.

Lester is survived by his wife U.V.; sister Joann Thompson; daughters Patricia Phoebus, Debbie Landon, and Danita Wallace Pelt (Steve); granddaughters Brittany Landon, Kelsey Landon, and Erika Phoebus-Davenport (John); and great-grandson Evan Davenport.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Lester and Mae Wallace; sisters Judith Wallace, Berniece Osburn, and Mildred Seratt; brothers Wayne, Herbert, Harold, Dale, Sanford, and Bobby Wallace; and grandson Ronald Phoebus, Jr.

At the deceased’s wish, he will be cremated and there will be no funeral service.

In lieu of flowers for the family, donations to the American Heart Society in Lester’s memory will be appreciated.

The family of Lester "LT" Wallace Jr has entrusted his care and cremation to Mallett Funeral Home and Crematory, 417 East Cherokee Street, Wagoner, Oklahoma, 74467. 918-485-2911