Fred Wendell Canaday

Services will be held at 1 p.m. on Monday at Hunter Funeral Home, located at 208 West Main St. in Watertown, followed by his burial at Hunter Memorial Park, located at 9767 Sparta Pike (also known as Highway 70) in Watertown. Visitation will be from 11 a.m. until 1 p.m. on Monday at the funeral home.

In lieu of flowers (if desired), individuals are encouraged to make a donation to the Fred Canaday Memorial Fund by writing those to Grace and Truth Ministries International. Envelopes will be available at the funeral home, and more can be read about the ministry at www.gracetruthministries.net. The ministry of Grace and Truth Ministries International is ongoing as long as God will allow.

Fred is survived by: his wife of 59 years, Margie Canaday. He is survived by six children — daughter Diana Davison (late Mark) of Carbondale, Illinois; Steve (Paulette) Canaday of Lowell, Indiana; Louis (Teresa) Canaday of Gaines, Michigan; Todd (Carol) Canaday of Gallatin; daughter Marcia (Dan) Escobar of Lebanon; Sheryl (Richard) Georgas of Munster, Indiana. Also surviving are their 20 grandchildren along with their spouses/partners, including: (Diana) Heather Cook; (Steve) Brian Simdars, Sheri Simdars-Betz, Felicia Kersey, Angela Baron, Vanessa Baron, Janessa McKinney; (Louis) Amanda Bolen, Melissa Lutterman, Melinda Cherry; (Todd) Paul Canaday, Travis Canaday, Joshua Canaday; (Marcia) Deahna Cring, Nathan Escobar, Bethany McMillan; (Sheryl) Brendan Georgas, Sean Georgas, Amelia Georgas and Matthew Georgas.

Each grandchild’s family who have children have provided the blessing and legacy of 38 great-grandchildren. Fred has been faithful to consistently pray for each family member that they might come to a saving faith in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.

Fred is also survived by: his brothers, Gerald (late Sue) Canaday of St. Charles, Missouri, Steve (late Shirley) Canaday of Marion, Illinois; and sisters, Marcia (Bob) Cochran of the Villages, Florida, and Kathy (Jim) Seymour of Jacksonville, Illinois.

Fred was preceded in death by: his parents, Jerry and Bertha Canaday; an infant son, Fred Canaday; his sister, Myrna (late Bob) Newenham; nephew, Dan Canaday; niece, Joni Spencer.

From his family of siblings, Fred is survived by 12 nieces and nephews.

Fred is joyfully in Heaven worshipping Jesus Christ, whom he has loved for most of his life, having been taught at a very young age by his mother of the good news of Jesus dying to make payment for all of the sins that he would ever commit, and his faith in Jesus was made secure as a child.

Over his lifetime, Fred was discipled by many a faithful saints to grow in the truth of God’s word. This hope of eternal life through Jesus has given him an assurance through his life that this world is not his forever home, and the trials of this Earth would be over with his final breath as he stood before his creator God and His son, Jesus Christ.

In high school, Fred was a star football player on the Johnston City high school football team, and he has always been an avid reader. Right up until the point of his passing, Fred has read books daily.

After marrying Margie in 1964, they both dedicated their lives to serving the Lord in ministry and churches throughout their marriage. They consistently raised their children in the church when they lived at home in an effort to provide a biblical foundation for life.

Fred and Margie owned a commercial roofing business (Professional Urethanes, Inc.) from 1978 until 2005.

The family enjoyed their most precious times with each other on the farm in Elida, Ohio, before Fred began his business. After retirement and all of the kids were on their own, Fred and Margie purchased an 88 acre farm in Paris, which he purchased for the specific purpose of the family having fun there.

Fred built a junior Olympic-sized pool, and the grandchildren enjoyed time with grandma and grandpa there.

Fred and Margie enjoyed traveling around the world during their working years.

Upon semi-retirement, Fred and Margie were burdened to travel various overseas locations for ministry purposes. In 1990, Fred began serving as field director with Baptist International Evangelistic Ministries (BIEM), training national pastors in church planting and theological education through Biblical institutes established in Moldova and Romania. Having a burden for the pastors and for God’s truth to be taught to pastors in India, Fred founded the missions organization, Grace and Truth Ministries International (GTMI) in 2008. That missions organization has continued in India for the past 15 years and has expanded to Kenya and the Philippines, continuing to plant churches and to train pastors through established Biblical institutes.

Margie has faithfully stood by Fred’s side, supporting her husband in prayer and in support of the calling of God on their lives, and in teaching women and children as God allowed her health to do so.

Fred was saddened by his inability to attend church any longer and to teach God’s word in the adult Sunday school class at Music City Baptist Church. Fred never felt the need to totally retire from ministry as he knew that the need for biblical training of pastors and the discipleship of Christians is so important in order to further Gospel training.

Hunter Funeral Home was entrusted with the arrangements.