William (Bill) E. Reed of Greenfield fought the good fight until the afternoon of April 25, 2016. He was surrounded by his family at the Ellison House in Greenfield as he peacefully went to his reward and into the presence of His Lord and Savior.
He was the only child of Ertis and Lucy Reed, born on November 30, 1929, in Washington D.C. He grew up in Michigantown and married Norma Jean Saltsman of Frankfort, who preceded him in death in 2013. Together they spent 40 years of their 62 years of marriage in the ministry. After graduating from Roanoke Bible College 1965 (now Mid-Atlantic Christian University, Elizabeth City, N.C.), Bill and Norma began planting churches. He was the founding evangelist of Edenton Church of Christ and New Berne Church of Christ both in North Carolina as well as Moores Hill Church of Christ and Northside Christian Church (Greenfield) in Indiana. He also ministered at the New Castle Church of Christ.
He was the beloved patriarch and spent many evenings at the head of the family table; children and grandchildren assembled with all eyes on him and ears tuned in to hear his life’s stories of the ministry, his glory days of high school basketball in Michigantown, his time in the Navy aboard ship or his time in France. His eyes and heart were kind and good, and his laughter was easy and pure. He ended each story with the words, “Well, those were the days!” leaving us all longing to hear more.
For more than forty five years, it was the custom of Bill and Norma to go out for breakfast together every morning. They loved traveling to Maryland, Virginia and the Carolinas twice a year to visit family and friends. They also enjoyed a trip to Brown County each spring to celebrate their anniversary. They became regulars and enjoyed many meals together with family and friends at Lincoln Square Pancake House in Greenfield.
He was a noticeably well-dressed man. He enjoyed wearing a hat and had quite a collection, but what he wore most beautifully was his wonderful heart, compelling laughter and love for the Lord. His faithful dedication will not be forgotten, and his family will faithfully continue his to carry the banner of the cross.
Bill is survived by his daughter, Pam (Mike) Moncrief; sons, Ron and Chris (Cindy); nine grandchildren; and nine great-grandchildren.
Graveside services will be Saturday, April 30, at 10 a.m. at Whiteman Cemetery in Michigantown. This will precede the visitation, which will be later in the afternoon from 2 to 4 p.m., followed by the Celebration of Life service. Visitation and service will be at Northside Christian Church, 1307 Greenfield Dr., Greenfield, IN.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Northside Christian Church or the William Reed GoFundMe account, gofundme.com/williamreed, for an autisim service dog for his great nephew McConaughey Carnes.
Arrangements have been entrusted to Stillinger Family Funeral Home, Pasco Chapel of Greenfield.
Friends may share a memory and/or condolence with William’s family online at stillingerfamily.com.
