Once a teacher always a teacher. That truly can be said of Mr. Reed, who was a public school teacher and administrator for 45 years.

I didn’t know him until after he had retired for a number of years and was serving on the Advisory Council of the Egyptian Area Agency on Aging. He represented the senior adults of Franklin County for 12 years with great distinction as a member of our Advisory Council.

At every meeting I could see Mr. Reed assuming once again the role of educator as he warned Council members of scams, schemes, shady deals, and deals too good to be true. He showed a continual concern about the welfare of older people everywhere.

Often Mr. Reed requested that letters be written and telephone calls be made to appropriate officials to protest rules and regulations which hurt the welfare of older people. He wasn’t against government. He often asked legislators to enact laws which protected seniors. But he wanted government’s rules and regulations to be fair to older people and yet simple enough to be understood and enforced.

He was concerned about the fate of young people, too. He told any young person who would listen to invest their money and not depend solely on Social Security for their retirement income. He often spoke of dependence on one’s self and determining one’s own fate. The underlying theme of his teachings seemed to indicate to me that only when people have learned to be self-reliant can they serve as good role models for others, and be able to help others effectively.

Mr. Reed worked in the public school system in our local area for many years. He taught school in Union County, Herrin, and Sesser. He also worked in schools in Concord and Belleville, Illinois and Seward, Alaska. It was obvious that he enjoyed teaching and he had great pride in those years of public service.

Although he retired from public education in 1972, he never stopped educating the public. He enjoyed learning new things and passing on his knowledge.

Daniel Webster said, “There’s always room at the top for one more.” To me, not only was Mr. Reed at the top but he taught others how to get there. He was very active in community affairs and he continued to teach people long after he retired as a public educator. Mr. Reed was 92 when passed away on March 2, 2000.

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