Dr. John Ernest Reed, M.D.
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Dr. John Ernest Reed, M.D. departed this life on January 25, 2021 at the age of 81 after a decade-long battle with Alzheimer's Disease.
John was born August 16, 1939 to George Martin and Elizabeth Newswanger Reed in Brutus, MI. The family moved to Lancaster County, PA in John's infancy, and it was here he grew up, getting his education in a two-room schoolhouse. Elizabeth passed away in 1950. Two years later, George remarried Anna Bertha Weaver, who became a beloved mother to John and his six siblings.
John graduated Lancaster Mennonite School in 1957, worked for his father for a year in the trucking business, and then attended Eastern Mennonite College (now Eastern Mennonite University) in Harrisonburg, VA. It was at Eastern Mennonite that John met the two great loves which would define his life - medicine and Carolyn Frances Heatwole.
John and Carolyn were married on August 25, 1962 at Weavers Mennonite Church.
John attended medical school at the Medical College of Virginia in Richmond, and performed his internship at Norfolk General Hospital. While in Norfolk a son arrived, John Douglas, born in 1967.
As a conscientious objector to the Vietnam War, John performed his alternative service at Sacred Heart Hospital in Cumberland, MD. It was here that a daughter arrived, Catherine Leigh, born in 1969.
John performed his residency at the University of Maryland and became board certified in Diagnostic Radiology and Nuclear Medicine.
The family moved back to Richmond in 1974, where they stayed for 25 years and where their children grew up. John practiced medicine, first at Stuart Circle Hospital, and then spent the bulk of his career at St. Mary's Hospital. In these years, John and Carolyn were active members of the First Mennonite Church of Richmond.
In 1999, John and Carolyn moved to Wooster, OH to be near their daughter and her growing family. John practiced at the Cleveland Clinic location in Wooster, until his retirement in 2007. He returned to work on a part-time basis until his final retirement in 2009.
John and Carolyn moved back to Harrisonburg, just down the street from where they met. They enjoyed the fellowship of family and reconnecting with friends they had known from many stages of life. As John's disease progressed, he was forced to move into a more intensive memory care unit in 2017. The ravages of COVID made it impossible for family to visit in the last year of John's life.
Every job he undertook was done thoroughly and with great care. He was an expert woodworker. A chess table, a blanket chest, and a grandfather clock built by his hands still grace the home that he and Carolyn shared. True to his modest character, the blue ribbons he won at the Virginia State Fair are not on display, but are discreetly tucked into the drawers.
He was a loving husband and father. His four grandchildren remember him as "Paw Paw", loving and indulgent, always ready for ice skating, skiing, amusement park rides or playing "the bug". On the first snowy day of every year, he loved to go for an adventure drive. Ice cream was frequently a part of these outings.
His favorite hobby was sailing. He loved to let others steer his boat, and he always gave the advice to pick a spot on the horizon and aim for that. We believe he lived his faith the same way. God was his spot on the horizon, and he steadily aimed his life in that direction with a careful hand on the tiller.
We speak of John's "battle with Alzheimer's", and one might think that after taking his memories and his physical body - that Alzheimer's was the winner of that battle. Those of us who loved John Reed say no. Alzheimer's could never take his kindness, his gentleness, or his loving personality. Alzheimer's never took the love of his family. Alzheimer's cannot undo the good he did in the lives of thousands of his patients. The essence of John Reed remained untouched, and the love he leaves behind is undimmed and undiminished. Make no mistake, John Reed is the winner of this battle, and he now goes home victorious.
John is preceded in death by his parents and stepmother; his two brothers, Harold (Barbara, who survives) and Paul Reed (Ethel, who survives) ; and two sisters, Anna Mary and Ruth Reed.
John is survived by two sisters, Dorcas Danner (James, deceased) and Irene Zimmerman (Jay, who survives); his children, Doug Reed and Cathy Yoder; a son-in-law, Brian Yoder; four grandchildren ?Ilsa Reed, Laszlo Reed, Reed Yoder, and Sam Yoder ? and his devoted wife, Carolyn.
Arrangements are being by handled Kyger Funeral Home. Services will be held at Park View Mennonite Church on Saturday, March 6 at 2pm. Attendance may be limited due to COVID. As the vaccination situation becomes clearer, the family will send out guidance. The service will be streamed online. John's remains will be interred at Weavers Mennonite Church Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the Alzheimer's Association (alz.org).