Elmer Wade Tolley (Pete), of Radford, and a native of Bartley, W.Va., died peacefully on July 3, 2021, at Highland Ridge Rehabilitation Center in Dublin after a long battle with dementia. He was 81 years old.
Pete had an abiding love for the mountains. He was especially fond of fishing, birdwatching, and gardening with his wife, Mitzie, at their home on Claytor Lake, and playing golf at The Pete Dye River Course of Virginia Tech, in Blacksburg.
Pete was an outstanding athlete at Big Creek High School, in War, W.Va., where he excelled in football and baseball. He received a football scholarship to West Virginia University where he was a starting lineman and linebacker for the Mountaineers in 1958, 1959, and 1960.
He earned a BS in physical education from WVU in 1961 and an MS in education from WVU in 1971. For his many athletic accomplishments, Pete was inducted into the McDowell County Hall of Fame by the Lions Club in Welch, W.Va., in 2015.
He was truly a patriot and devoted most of his life to military service as an officer in the U.S. Army. He served two tours of duty in Vietnam as a Green Beret with the U.S. Army Special Forces and the 101st Airborne Division. Major E.W. Tolley retired from the Armed Forces in 1985.
Preceding him in death were his parents, Dallas Roosevelt Tolley and Frances Marie Hammitt Tolley; sisters Hazel T. Murensky and Margaret Ann Whitaker; brothers Fred N. Tolley, Robert “Bob” P. Tolley, and David R. Tolley.
Pete is survived, and greatly missed, by his wife, Mitzie Marie Tolley of Radford; daughter Caroline Tolley Noffsinger and her husband, Martin Wesley Noffsinger, Jr., of Williamsburg, Va.; a grandson, Martin Wesley Noffsinger, III of Williamsburg; a granddaughter, Ouida Noffsinger Laumer, and her husband, Daniel Arthur Laumer of Richmond; a brother, Samual M. Tolley and his wife, Patricia L. Tolley of Albuquerque, N.M.; sisters-in-law Jessie A. Tolley of Charleston, W.Va. and Peggy M. Tolley of Las Vegas, Nev.; a brother-in-law, Earl A. Whitaker of Denton, N.C., and many nieces and nephews.
Condolences should be sent in care of The Tolley Family, to 7011 Owens Rd., Radford, VA 24141.
Pete’s family welcomes remembrances as they receive family and friends on Saturday, Aug. 7, 2021, from 3 to 5 p.m. at the Mullins Funeral Home, 120 W. Main St., Radford, VA 24141.
In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to your favorite charity or church.
The Tolley family is in the care of Mullins Funeral Home & Crematory in Radford, Virginia. www.mullinsfuneralhome.com.
