Wayne Jerde Moe, 95, of Waynesboro, Virginia died November 29, 2015 in Centreville, Virginia.

He was born on April 20, 1920, in the small town of Dawson, Minnesota, the youngest of three siblings born to parents, Anne Ingeborg Moe nee Jerde, and Lars Moe.

Colonel Moe graduated from Dawson High School, the University of Maryland, the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College, the U.S. Army Infantry Officer's Advanced Course, and numerous other military schools.

He was called for Army service in 1941, and was commissioned a 2nd Lt. of Infantry in June 1942 and served as a Captain Infantry Rifle Company Commander in Germany during WWII. After WWII, he married Audrey Jean Soblom, also of Dawson, Minnesota. He was sent back to Europe in June of 1946, to join the elite forces of the U.S. Occupation Force, the U.S. Army Constabulary. He took command of a Constabulary Troop, and he and his new bride lived near Darmstadt, mostly on the Rhine River, for two years. When the Russians started hostilities in 1948, they were transferred to the Eastern Border of Hesse, which eventually became the border between East and West Germany. They were sent back to the US in 1949, where Colonel Moe was selected as special staff to the Vice Chief of Staff of the Army, and he was sent off to the Korean War in 1952 as the Battalion Executive Officer for the 1/7 Infantry, the Manchus.

He came back to the States in 1953, and was assigned as an instructor at the U.S. Army Medical School and then took his young family to Germany in 1957, as the Commander of an Infantry unit in the Fulda Gap, about three miles from the East-West German Border. In case of an attack from the East, the mission of the 50th Armored Rifle Battalion was to delay the attack in order to gain time for the main force to deploy a counteroffensive. In 1960, he was sent back to the United States and the Pentagon for the second time. In 1965, he went to Finland and the American Embassy in Helsinki where he was the U.S. Military Attaché. While in Helsinki, he and his family resumed their love for skiing and winter sports, and Colonel Moe successfully competed against Finnish and Scandinavian officers to win many a competition, winning Gold in the Biathlon in the 1966 and 1967 International Service Competitions. Upon his departure from the position, Colonel Moe was honored as a Commander of the Order of the White Rose of Finland by the President himself for his assistance to the Finnish Nation during a time of great sensitivities with Finland's neighbor, the Soviet Union. The Moe Family then came back to the United States in 1968 and then Colonel Moe deployed to Vietnam in 1970, commanding during the Cambodian Cross-Border Incursion. He retired in 1973 as the Army Inspector General, First Army with over 32 years of continuous service.

Colonel Moe was an Infantry Combat Commander in World War II, the Korean War, and Vietnam; he has seven battle stars on his campaign ribbons. The most significant campaigns in which he participated were: World War II, Battle of the Bulge; Korean War, Heartbreak Ridge; and Vietnam Cross Border Operation. He has numerous decorations, citations, and awards for Valor on the battlefield and Distinguished and Meritorious Service. He is in the Infantry Hall of Fame at the Infantry Center in Fort Benning, Georgia. He holds a life-long commission as a U.S. Army Colonel nominated by the President and confirmed by the Senate.

After his retirement from the military, Colonel Moe and his family moved to Waynesboro, Virginia where he started Cardinal Realty and enjoyed much success within the Waynesboro community, a place he and his family grew to love. He eventually sold Cardinal Realty and enjoyed dabbling in the stock market, encountering successes which he then distributed to family members and to those in need.

Colonel Moe was introduced to the sport of polo too late in life to have been a real expert in the field; however, he did learn to play the game well enough to enjoy it immensely in later years. This love between horse and rider had an influence on his children, all of whom developed a great passion for horses and ensured there was always a horse or two on his property. All of his daughters remain equestrians today.

Colonel Moe was preceded in death by his wife, Audrey Jean; a daughter, Linda Jean; parents, Anne and Lars Moe; a sister, Audrey Froiland.

He is survived by daughters, Judy Ann Moe Hetz and her husband Richard, Barbara Jean Moe, Mary Lee Moe and her husband Terry Porter, Laurie Gaye Moe Buckhout and her husband Paul; four grandchildren, Matthew Hetz, Laura Hetz, John Buckhout, and Thomas Buckhout; a sister, Irene Johnson; and numerous cousins, nieces, and nephews. He is remembered as a loving husband, father, and friend. He had a great sense of humor, was fun to be with, and he will be missed by many. One of his favorite sayings in later years was: "A woman is only a woman but a good cigar is a smoke." He was also an avid hunter, fisherman, and outdoorsman. May he rest in peace.

He will be interred in Arlington National Cemetery with full military honors. He will be buried next to his wife, Audrey Jean Moe, who was a registered nurse and served in WWII as one of the first Army Air Corp Flight Nurses.

A Memorial Ceremony will be held at McDow Funeral Home on Thursday, December 3, 2015 at 2 pm and visitation with the family will be from 1 to 2 pm, prior to the Memorial Ceremony.

McDow has been entrusted with arrangements.

Condolences and memories may be shared with the family at www.mcdowfuneralhomeinc.com.