Wanda Lee Fleming

Long-time Edmonds Resident Wanda Lee Fleming died peacefully 19 April 2017 at Highgate Assisted Living in Bozeman, Montana.



Wanda Lee Parchman was born in Shawnee, Oklahoma, on the second of December, 1928 to John R. and Leveta (Seay) Parchman. She grew up and attended high school in the Shawnee area. In high school she met and married her first husband, Jack Sager. The marriage did not last long, but did produce a son, Gary Sager. After divorcing, Wanda was a reporter for a Muskogee, Oklahoma newspaper for two years.



In 1950, she joined the Women’s Army Corps and quickly rose through the ranks. Her assignments throughout her career had a largely public relations flavor and she was often the center of attention as a promoter for and exemplar for the Women’s Army Corps.



In 1954, Wanda met and married John Fleming, who was making a career in the Army Band. They were soon sent to Germany as a couple. In Germany, Wanda continued her public relations assignments. John and Wanda were the subject of Armed Forces publications and local media news releases wherever they went, and Wanda starred in publicity movies made by the Army.

John and Wanda both received commendations for their service in Germany during the Cold War.

On their return to the US, John and Wanda were assigned to Army Recruiting in the Seattle area, where they resided until her retirement with 20 years of service in 1970. John spent 1 year in Vietnam as a Career Counselor and retired soon afterwards, completing over 23 years in the service.



During their last years of military service, John and Wanda began investing in real estate. After retirement, Wanda studied to become a real estate broker. She and John established Ballinger Realty, north of Seattle, with Wanda as the broker.



John trained as an HVAC technician for a local hospital and eventually retired from that job to become the handy man and computer expert for Ballinger Realty. They grew the business to have 2 full-time employees and several real estate agents.



John died in 1999 and Wanda continued operating Ballinger Realty until 2006, when she sold the business. Wanda relocated from Seattle to Bozeman in early 2013.



Wanda is survived by her son Gary Sager and his wife Pauline of Bozeman, MT; grand-daughter Kendal Sager and husband Brandon Hyman of Los Altos, CA; grand-son Arthur Sager of Angwin, CA; and ex daughter-in-law Paula Sager of Los Altos, CA. Wanda’s niece and namesake, Wanda Jo Simmons of Ellinwood, KS, was like a daughter to her and died 1 March 2015.



A graveside funeral service will be held 2:00 p.m. Saturday, April 29, 2017 at Floral Hills Cemetery in Lynnwood, WA. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations in the name of SFC. Wanda L. Fleming to any organization that supports veterans. In Bozeman, we recommend Warriors and Quiet Waters (https://warriorsandquietwaters.org/).