William Bradford Wood

MISSION - William Bradford "Brad" Wood was born in McAllen on Valentine's Day 1950 to Myrtle Bess Rome and William Ellis "Bill" Wood of Mission. His beautiful blue eyes with that mischievous twinkle opened in Heaven on April 28, 2018, while sleeping peacefully in the arms of his soulmate and wife of 36 years, Leeda, at Methodist St. Catherine's Hospital in Katy, TX. 

Survivors include his wife, Leeda Thompson Wood, of Mission; mother- and father-in-law, Evelyn and J. O. Thompson, Sweeny; sons, William Bradford (Dora) Wood II, McAllen, and Jason Mathew (Heather) Wood, San Antonio; daughter, Leeda Catherine Wood, Denver, CO; grandchildren: Randy and Lawrence Wood of McAllen; Timothy Wood, US Army, South Korea; Nicholas Wood, Edinburg; Aiden and Alexis Wood of San Antonio; sister Lynne (Jim) Day of San Benito; and nieces, Debbie Mudd (Brian) Tucker; Marilyn Mudd; Jennifer Day (Don) Stout; and Stephanie Day (Ray) Melendez. 

He is preceded in death by his parents, Bill and Myrtle Bess Wood; stepmother Teona Jasman Buck Wood; sisters Ginger Wood, Marsha Redding Kennedy, and Bobbie Kay Mudd Parish; and grandson Christopher Samuel Wood. 

Brad valiantly fought through a sudden onset of a rare autoimmune disorder, Wegener's granulomatosis (WG), frequent hospitalizations and 4 months of dialysis from December 2008-May 2009, and achieved long-term remission. But myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) diagnosed in June 2016 led to acute myelogenous leukemia (AML) in December of 2017. Despite the best efforts of leukemia specialists at M. D. Anderson (MDA) in Houston through April 2018, Brad was unable to achieve remission and lost his battle during a brief stay at St. Catherine's for physical rehabilitation following chemotherapy. 

Brad was a humble man of his word, had a huge heart, and was generous with his love and assistance to many throughout his life. He was a life-long member of First Presbyterian Church in Mission, graduated in the Class of 1968 from Mission High School, and attended Pan American University majoring in Finance. A loyal and dedicated employee of Weaks Martin Implement Co. in Mission from the age of 16 until retirement at the age of 62 on December 31, 2012, a span of 46 years, he served as parts manager for the majority of that time. As parts manager, he was honored to achieve #1 parts department sales for all US John Deere dealerships on several occasions but was always near the top in many other years. He enjoyed many weekends chilling on the beach at South Padre Island. In the 1990's, Brad became first a licensed Texas Realtor and then Real Estate Broker, working as a sales agent for Cimarron Real Estate and later as broker/owner of River Rock Real Estate, Mission. He loved golf and enjoyed playing with many friends, starting at Shary Golf Course as a child and continuing as a long-time member of Cimarron Country Club, playing golf and serving for many years as president and member of the Cimarron Board of Governors.   

The family wishes to thank those who walked this journey with us through the past 10 years: Dr. Robert D. Martinez and Dr. Roberto Mangoo-Karim, McAllen, for saving Brad's life and his kidneys from WG; special loving care and support from Macrina Guillen and Ashley Villegas at South Texas Kidney; Dr. Guillermo Lazo and staff of South Texas Oncology for their loving care while in treatment for MDS; doctors and staff at Doctor's Hospital at Renaissance in December 2017, but especially Dr. Jacob Birnbaum who maintained contact and provided support throughout, from AML diagnosis and treatment; and all the doctors, physician assistants, nurse practitioners and nurses, patient care specialists, case managers, A*Med Community Hospice and many others who touched our lives and became part of our family during our 4 1/2 months of hospitalization at MDA and St. Catherine's. A special thanks to our angel in the guise of Nurse Cheryl, who provided gentle and compassionate care to Brad during his final hours and great comfort to our family.  

In honor of Brad's wish that his life be celebrated and not mourned, the family will be present for visitation on June 15, 2018, from 5-9 pm at Ric Brown Family Funeral Home, 621 E Griffin Parkway, Mission. Celebration of life service will begin at 7 pm, with a religious service led by childhood and lifelong friend Dr. Pat (Sandy) Riley. Following will be family sharing of loving memories of Brad, and friends are encouraged to share Brad stories and memories with all, as well. The family will be wearing clothing and attire reminiscent of Brad's life and loves, and ask that friends consider doing the same: golf, John Deere, beach, fishing, or Hawaiian theme.  

In lieu of flowers, please consider contributing in Brad's memory to Halo House, a Houston-based organization whose mission is to help save the lives of cancer patients battling leukemia, lymphoma or myeloma by providing them with fully furnished temporary housing at a very low cost while they are undergoing active treatment for their cancer at the Texas Medical Center. Donations can be made through a donation link at https://www.halohousefoundation.org, or by mail to Halo House Foundation, 4010 Blue Bonnet Blvd #209, Houston, TX 77025; or to any charity of your choice. 

Cremation arrangements were handled through Dixon Funeral Home, Brazoria, TX. Celebration of life services are entrusted to Ric Brown Family Funeral Home of Mission. 

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