Lud Lankford Ward

Lud L. (Budgie) Ward, 92, passed away on November 21, 2020. He was born February 3, 1928 in White, GA to the late Marida and Pauline Ward. Lud was a long-distance truck driver and proud member of Teamsters Local 24. He retired from Consolidated Freightways with 27 years of service, having received numerous performance awards including achieving 1.2 million miles of accident-free driving. Lud was always with a joke and loved to laugh. He had unique expressions known only to be his. He would mesmerize his children and grandchildren (known to them as “Paw Paw”) with stories of the old times when he was a boy forced to leave school at age 11 to work picking cotton. He was admired for his success as a man who evolved from limited means and education and was always gracious. He had a genuine and quietly generous heart for those who strived but were less fortunate. Rare would a day ever pass that Lud would not have sang a song and he never missed a chance to dance at the delight of others. Lud enjoyed mechanics and loved to spend time in his garage, particularly with his son and grandson alongside. Lud was supportive of his family as long-time members of the Akron Baptist Temple and in recent years he attended Valley Community Church.

Lud was preceded in death by his parents; brother, J.C. Ward; and sister, Lanelle (Ralph) Vaughan. Lud is survived by his wife of almost 70 years, Hazel; children, Paula (Clarence) Shaw, Joyce Ward, and Todd (Lisa) Ward; brother, John Perry (Dee) Akins; grandchildren, Andrew Ward, Todd Michael Ward, Alison Ward, Emily (Drew) Conyers, Elizabeth (Joshua) Huffman, and Ellyn (Frank) Adley; great-grandchildren, Brody and Courtney Conyers, Noah, Hannah, Harrison and Greyson Huffman, Campbel and Finnegan Adley, and Myles and Parker Ward.

Donations in Lud’s memory may be made to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.

Private services to be held.