Earl Rupert Wager, Jr.

Earl Rupert Wager, Jr died peacefully in his sleep on Tuesday, April 7, 2020.  A native of Watertown, NY and long-time resident of Atlanta, GA, Rupert had spent his final years at Mary Wade Home in New Haven, CT.

Rupert was born August 3, 1935 in Watertown to Earl Rupert Wager, Sr. and Marion Greene Wager. The oldest of three children, he graduated from Watertown High School in 1953 and attended the University of Vermont in Burlington, VT.  After college, Rupert joined Wager Construction Corporation of Watertown, a firm started by his father and uncle. As president, Rupert oversaw the construction of numerous commercial projects in Watertown and the northern New York area. He moved to Atlanta in 1976 and served as executive project manager for several commercial construction firms before opening his own company specializing in high-end finish work and commercial renovation.  Rupert and his wife RoseAnne enjoyed spending time at their vacation home on Lake Martin, AL, but his heart was always in his beloved Upstate New York, cherishing memories of time spent on Lake Ontario’s Chaumont Bay and in Cape Vincent on the St. Lawrence River.

Brother of the late Penelope Wager Thruston (Rogers) and the late Edwin Wager (Mary Watson Misek), Rupert was the father of Della Wager Wells (Jere) of Newport, RI, Barbara Brink Wager (Scott Connolly) of Burlington, VT, and Carrie Greene Wager of Watertown, MA. The mother of his three daughters, Sandra Brink Hill, of Ithaca, NY, also survives him.

With his wife of 40 years, RoseAnne Ryan Wager, who died in 2010, Rupert was stepfather to Kevin Ryan (Jennifer), Patrick Ryan (Linda), Terri Ryan Sullivan (David Mancuso), Sheryl Ryan Nolan (Bob), and Michael Ryan, and brother-in-law to Mary Watson Misek. He is also survived by his nieces Betsy Thruston Craver (Jim) and Katie Thruston Garcia (Ray), a nephew Gates Thruston (René), and eleven grandchildren:  Daniel Ryan, Christopher Nolan, Casey Nolan (Megan), Corey Nolan, Judson Wells, Aubrey Wells, Lucille Connolly, Lena Connolly, Brooke Sullivan, Kelsey Sullivan, Ryan Sullivan, Meghan Ryan, and Emily Ryan, and his great nieces and nephews, Thomas Craver, Salvador Garcia, Gates Thruston, Kennedy Thruston, and Jayde Thruston.

The family wishes to thank the staff of Mary Wade Home in New Haven, CT, who have provided Rupert with excellent loving care since his move there in 2016.  Rupert will be interred at Brookside Cemetery in Watertown, NY, and the family will have a memorial service at Trinity Episcopal Church in Watertown at a later date. Condolences may be made to www.dlcalarco.com   Arrangements are with D.L. Calarco Funeral Home, Inc.

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