Born in Little River in 1945 and bapisted at Ōnuku Church near Akaroa, Wallace was of Ngāi Tahu, Kāti Māmoe and Waitaha descent.

[4] Aged 17, he joined the Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF), and served as an aircraft technician for 11 years.

[4][5] He spent 12 years in Nelson, becoming a canon in 1997, before moving to Hokitika when he was appointed archdeacon of Te Tai Poutini.

[6] Following the death of John Gray in 2015, Wallace was nominated at the electoral college of 23–25 September 2016 to be the second Pīhopa o Te Waipounamu.

[2] He was duly consecrated at Ōnuku Marae on the shores of Akaroa Harbour on 21 January 2017, and installed at the Church of the Good Shepherd in Phillipstown the following day.