Walter Reid

Walter Franklin Reid was born on February 1, 1951, in Cleveland, Georgia, to Ruby Allen Reid and William Albert Reid. His early years were spent living with his parents and grandparents on a farm just north of Cleveland. His parents decided to buy the house across the road with several acres of land once it became available. This house had no electricity or indoor plumbing and you could see through the slats between the boards making up the walls, but the Reids were determined to make it a home. Three years later, Walter’s only sibling was born, Wayne Edwin Reid. They were 9 years apart and Walter’s world was forever changed. It took Walter and Wayne many years of wrestling through life before they became brothers in the love of Jesus Christ, but once they were bonded through the Holy Spirit, they shared a very special relationship. As Walter grew, he obtained odd jobs in the summers such as cutting and baling hay when he was only 9 years old, mowing the lawn at Truett McConnell, and helping survey and prep what would become Albert Reid Road, for paving at age 15. At White County High School he was highly influenced by Horace Fitzpatrick in the Agriculture and FFA programs and in his shop class. He applied to the Electrical Construction program at North Georgia Tech and when the Dean called and requested he pick another program of study based on his high school academics, he made a deal. Walter asked that they let him try the Electrical program for one quarter and if his grades were not up to par, he would gladly reconsider his program. He graduated with honors from the Electrical Construction program on time, two years later. Because he was afraid of climbing power poles, he decided to enter residential contracting after graduation, but quickly decided that pulling wires was too tough a job to continue if women kept moving outlets and switches. Walter married the love of his life, Brinda Nix Reid, on August 7, 1971. She truly became his soulmate and was willing to attempt anything he asked of her. Through the early years of their marriage, Walter worked at Ames Textiles (but he found it monotonous and claustrophobic), then he drove an 18 wheeler for Speedy Thomas (Brinda didn’t like him being gone) and then he worked for the White County Road Department. It was at the road department that he rediscovered his love of grading and hauling and he learned mechanic skills from a wonderful mentor in Ray Pardue. After his father passed away from a massive heart attack, Walter couldn’t bear returning to the road department so he obtained employment from his Uncle Ray Jones at J&S Farms chicken feed company in Gainesville. He started out as a truck driver, but over his 16 years there he learned how to do almost everything and he became Head of Maintenance. He redesigned the grain elevators and figured out ways to help the company run most efficiently. After Walter suffered from his first heart attack at J&S in September of 1992, it was concluded that he needed to reevaluate his employment options and he began working construction with Ronnie and Jeremy Fain. He enjoyed this work and all their many adventures for 5 years before he joined his nephew, Eric Cantrell, in a chicken litter fertilizer business. He officially retired from that after a few years, but still gratefully worked with Eric around the farm and on several projects until his death on Friday, June 10, 2022. Walter was a lifelong Methodist with a lot of independent Baptist influence. He grew up attending Loudsville Methodist Church and Loudsville Campmeeting. His family moved to Mt. Pleasant Methodist Church when he was a teenager and he served as Sunday School Superintendent there for many years. He attended Town Creek Baptist Church with his in-laws for many revivals and special events,however he and Brinda moved back to Loudsville 9 years ago. Although Walter’s faith was always strong and he had a personal relationship with Jesus, it wasn’t until he attended the Georgia Foothills Walk to Emmaus that he found God’s true purpose for his life in sharing God’s love with everyone, everywhere, in all ways. The Walk strengthened his prayer life, his time in the scripture, his sharing at church and his witness throughout his whole community. He did not miss a walk after he attended his first one and he adored his Emmaus family and loved them all as true brothers and sisters. Walter Reid has always been accused of being slow. A slow walker, talker, and worker. However, if you knew him, you knew he was actually thinking everything through with a contemplative wisdom before taking action. His love, his sacrificial nature, his wisdom and his humor will be greatly missed but we all rejoice that he is with his maker. He is survived by his wife of 50 years, Brinda Reid, two daughters, BreAnna (Ross) and Zaydee (Jordan) and five grandchildren that he was extremely proud of. He lived a simple life that consisted of many miracles and much perseverance. In lieu of flowers, please make donations to the Georgia Foothills Walk to Emmaus Scholarship Fund. GFWTE P.O. Box 908253 Gainesville, GA 30501-0919 To share a memory or leave a condolence for the family, visit barrettfh.com. Barrett Funeral Home, Cleveland. To watch livestream click this link. https://vimeo.com/721734516