Obituary of Wardell James Lindsay Jr

Wardell James Lindsay, Jr. was peacefully called from this earthly life on April 19, 2026. He was the first child born to Wardell James Lindsay, Sr., of Baltimore, and Ella Holloway of Smithfield, Virginia. Wardell was educated for 6 years in the public schools in Harlem, New York. He moved to Baltimore and completed his public education at Booker T. Washington Junior High, Douglass High School and Catonsville High School, where he graduated. He received a B.S. degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Maryland, and a master's degree from the Industrial College of the Armed Forces. Wardell was employed as a biomedical engineer at the National Institutes of Health in Washington and Johns Hopkins Medical School in Baltimore. While at the Medical School, he created and patented the first system for continuous, non-invasive monitoring of CO2 in the blood. His invention is used all over the world today to prevent death, intellectual disabilities and blindness in children. After Johns Hopkins, he was employed as an electrical engineer at the U.S. Defense Department, where he retired. Wardell loved people, mathematics, history and physics. He was very optimistic and outgoing, and participated in several civic and social organizations. In the 1960s, he was chairman of the Washington and Prince George's chapters of the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE). His participation in sit-ins and demonstrations led to numerous arrests, of which he was very, very proud. Wardell served on Howard County's Human Rights and Police commissions, and was a member of the League of Women Voters. He was also co-founder of the Baltimore-based nonprofit UDIG – the Urban Development Investment Group, and the Institute for Community Development (ICD) in Columbia, Maryland. In retirement, he became involved in the Howard County Council of Elders, where he enjoyed mentoring young people, teaching chess, and organizing chess tournaments for students. Wardell was very much a man of ideas. He was interested in solving problems related to astrophysics, such as the Big Bang and the shape of the universe. He also applied advanced mathematics to solve longstanding problems related to electromagnetism. Wardell was predeceased by his parents and his brother, Reginald Lindsay. He leaves to cherish his memory: wife Peggy Lindsay; daughter Kelly Kristen; son-in-law Uwe Kristen; son David Lindsay; and daughter-in-law Kimberly Lindsay. Wardell is also survived by five grandchildren: Parker, Lindsay, John, Denver and Hans; and a host of nieces, nephews, cousins and friends. On Tuesday, May 12, 2026, a homegoing celebration for Mr. Wardell Lindsay Jr. will be held at Vaughn Greene Funeral Services, 8728 Liberty Road Randallstown, MD 21133 where the family will receive friends from 10:00 a.m. until 10:30 a.m. with services to follow. Immediately following services, the Interment will be held at Saints Rest Cemetery.