Bishop William T. McAlilly of the Nashville Episcopal Area of The United Methodist Church announced his intention to appoint Rev. Rickey Wade as the superintendent of the Caney Fork River District in the Tennessee-Western Kentucky Conference. Rev. Wade will assume the new role beginning in July of 2023, with the setting of new appointments at the 2023 Annual Conference session.

Rev. Wade graduated from the University of the South with a Master of Divinity in 2007 and was ordained as an Elder in 2010. He has served churches in Wayne, Lawrence (on three occasions), Giles, Franklin, and Coffee Counties of Tennessee. He most recently served as senior pastor at Tullahoma First UMC.

In addition, he served several years on the Board of Ordained Ministry and the United Methodist Foundation for the Tennessee-Western Kentucky Conference.  Rev. Wade has participated on many occasions with Volunteers in Mission, and various other district and conference teams.

In his years of ministry, he also served on the board of directors for several non-profit mission-oriented ministries, as well as a chaplain for local hospitals and police departments.  Finally, Rev. Wade and his wife, Becky, have been active in Emmaus communities for over 20 years.

Rev. Wade grew up on a farm in Tennessee and has lived in this area with the exception of his U.S. Navy career.  He spent nine years in the submarine service and had an opportunity to see much of the world before pursuing the ministry. The Wades have five adult children and three grandchildren.