Mary Lou Reed's Obituary
Graveside services will be held on Wednesday, January 3, 2024, at 2:00 PM in the Mausoleum Chapel of Rosewood Park. A visitation will be held one hour prior to the graveside service at Rosewood Park. Mrs. Reed passed to the Lord on December 28, 2023, in Longview, TX surrounded by family.
Mary Lou was born on August 11, 1939, in Hunter, AR to parents John and Mary Bankhead. She graduated from Commerce High School where she was a State Tennis Champion in 1957; and then attended East Texas State University where Mary Lou was a member of the Chi Omega Sorority graduating class of 1961. Mary Lou received a Masters degree in 1976 followed by a Mid-Masters in 1978, both from SFA. Mary Lou worked in education for upwards of 40 years at multiple schools, most notably spending 6 years as the Assistant Principle at Longview High School and 14 years as the Principle of Ware Elementary.
Mary Lou was a devoted Christian whom loved the Lord and guided her family with love. She was baptized in the Baptist Church.
Mary Lou was preceded in death by her parents; daughter, Laura Reed; siblings Peggy, Billy, and Jerry; and her nephew Terry Bankhead. Those left to cherish Mary Lou’s memory include her son James “Jimmy” Reed and his wife Mikki; grandchildren Jacob, Coltin, and Kasyn; brother Charley; brother-in-law J.E. Reed and his wife Martha and her nephew Jayson in addition to the numerous nieces, nephews, extended family, and friends.
“Don’t grieve, for I am with the Lord now, and all of my loved ones that have passed, including my daughter. I am at peace now. I have spent my life loving and caring for others and guiding them as best I could, that is the job of a teacher and mother. Do not be sad that I am gone, but be glad I was here.”
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