Services for Mr. Ward J. Ford will be held Monday, September 21, 2026, 10:30 a.m., at Webb & Stephens Funeral Home-North with Bro. Chuck Overby officiating. Interment will follow at 12:00 p.m. at the Mississippi Veterans Memorial Cemetery. Webb & Stephens Funeral Homes are honored to be entrusted with arrangements.

Mr. Ford, 88, of Meridian, passed away Tuesday, September 15, 2026, at Baptist Anderson Hospital.

Ward was born in Sullivan County, Tennessee to Jacob and Elizabeth Minton Ford. Post graduation, he served in the Air Force for four years. He then relocated to Meridian where he became the district manager for the Birmingham News. Following his time at the Birmingham News, he dedicated 40 plus years with the city of Meridian as a building inspector, retiring in 2007. He also loved being outdoors and working in his yard. However, his favorite thing to do in his spare time was read. He was an avid reader and was a major supporter of the Meridian Public Library, spending many years reading the various newspapers and westerns. He was a devoted husband and loving father and grandfather and will be greatly missed by all who knew him.

He is survived by his children, Tammy Goss (Tim) of Meridian, MS and Jason Ford (Vanessa) of Petal, MS; grandsons, Christopher Goss, Jacob Ford, and Matthew Ford; brother, Daryl Ford of Decatur, MS; and sister, Patsy Wiggins of Johnson City, TN.

He is preceded in death by his wife of 53 years, Sherry Reed Ford; parents, Jacob and Elizabeth Minton Ford; sisters, Neva Edwards and Ethel Kelly; and brothers, Stacy, Everett, Warren, Lester, and Archie Ford.

Visitation will be held an hour prior to service at the funeral home.