Dr. Joseph Van Wagstaff

Dr. Joseph Van Wagstaff, 84, of Winston-Salem passed away peacefully on July 13 from complications from Alzheimer's at the Kate B. Reynolds Hospice Home. He was born April 18, 1930 in Harnett County, N.C. to Joseph Carson and Mildred Johnson Wagstaff. He graduated from Fuquay Springs High School in 1947. A Korean War veteran, Van served four years in the U. S. Navy, primarily as a flight simulator instructor. Upon discharge, he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Randolph-Macon College, a Masters of Business Administration Degree from Rutgers University, and a Ph. D. in Economics from the University of Virginia, where he studied under two winners of the Nobel Prize in Economics. His academic honors include memberships in Phi Beta Kappa and Omicron Delta Kappa. He was a charter member of the Alpha Chapter of Virginia, Omicron Delta Epsilon, the national honor society in economics, as well as a member of the Raven Society of the University of Virginia. He joined the faculty of Wake forest University in 1964, and was instrumental in establishing a Department of Economics in 1969. He was appointed chairman of the department for twelve years, but his most rewarding achievement was having taught over six thousand students during his tenure at Wake Forest. Upon retirement in1992, his faculty colleagues named a reading room in his honor. Van's contributions to the university and community extended beyond the classroom. He was the first director of the university's Urban Affairs Institute; the first chairman of the Citizens Budget Advisory Council, City of Winston-Salem; and a member of the First Board of Trustees, Graylyn Conference Center. In addition, he served on the Board of Trustees, North Carolina Council on Economic Education, and was an active member of the Developmental Economic Program, Winston-Salem/Forsyth County school system. He was a member of Augsburg Lutheran Church where he served on several committees and the Congregational Council. Van was our own Renaissance man. Largely self-taught, he made furniture, rebuilt cars, designed homes, crafted stain glass lamps, developed photographs, and was an expert handyman. In his later years, he enjoyed tracing the genealogy of the family name to its England roots in 1564. But with all of his personal accomplishments, he will best be remembered by his children for his legacy of love and devotion to his wife, Marge and family. He is survived by his wife of 58 years, Margaret Greif Wagstaff, two daughters, Victoria Lee Wagstaff Howell and husband, Rogers Glenn of Charlotte; Terry Lynn Wagstaff Williams and husband, Gregory Alan of Raleigh; a son, Joseph Van Wagstaff, Jr. and wife, Elizabeth Barron of Newnan, Georgia; eight grandchildren, Joseph Clayton, Adrienne Grace and Thomas Clark Howell; William Van, Joseph Grant and John Barron Wagstaff; Gregory Taylor and Margaret Ann Williams; two brothers, Frederic Carson Wagstaff and wife, Betty Ann and Jimmy Allen Wagstaff and wife, Barbara all of Fuquay-Varina; his sister Judy Mildred Wagstaff Knight and husband, James of Palm coast, FL. A Memorial Service will be held at Augsburg Lutheran Church, Saturday, July 19 at 11:00 AM. The family will receive friends following the service. In lieu of flowers, the family request that memorials be made to Augsburg Lutheran Church, 846 West Fifth Street, Winston-Salem, NC 27101 or Hospice and Palliative Care Center, 101 Hospice Lanes, Winston-Salem, NC 27103. A special thank you to the caregivers of the Kate B. Reynolds Hospice Home for their loving care of Van in his final days. Online condolences can be made at www.hayworth-miller.com.

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