Katherine “Billie” Marie Reed January 13, 1920 – February 28, 2019 Share this obituary Send Flowers Sign Guestbook Katherine Marie Reed (1920-2019) Katherine Marie Reed, better known as “Billie” Reed was born January 13, 1920 to William H. Reed and Lou Ella (Harvey) Reed in Logan, West Virginia. Billie was 99 years old. Miss Billie grew up in Beckley, West Virginia and graduated from Woodrow Wilson High School.
It was in Beckley where she was privileged to help start the Baptist Church on North Kanawha Street by soliciting funds and began her life ambition by teaching Sunday School, at the age of 17 years. At the age of 8 years she had accepted Christ as her Savior and accepted challenges of growth in Christian living and total commitment ongoing to the day God called her home to be ever present with Jesus Christ, her Savior and Lord. On leaving Beckley, West Virginia, she continued her bible studies and activities by getting involved in Victory Villa Baptist Church in Middle River, an area of Baltimore, MD.
She was employed by Glen L. Martin as a Manager of the Duplicating and Blue Print Department, during WWII. Still employed at Glen L. Martin, she decided to further her education by entering the Baptist Missionary Training School (BMTS) in Chicago, IL where she taught Sunday School on the South Side and Baptist Training Union field work on the North Side. Summers from BMTS were spent at Camp Cowan where she worked as camp nurse for two summers and one summer at Weirton Christian Center, Interim Children’s Ministries for the West Virginia Baptist Mission Board.
She graduated from BMTS in 1949. While in Chicago, God afforded her to go on a Pilgrim Journey to Japan. In Japan, Miss Reed was under civil services auspices.
Billie worked eight hours daily under jurisdiction of General Douglas McArthur and General Willoughby plus using God’s word approximately ten hours weekly teaching English just outside of Tokyo, near Tachikawa and in Billeting quarters of the Park Hotel in Tokyo. Three years after returning from Tokyo, Japan, to Panama City, she became a member of the First Baptist Church in September, 1953. She listed some Saints she knew and worked with in the church.
By 1957, the Lord saw a need for adult Sunday School classes and she was privileged to travel to Margate, England where she participated and assisted in the Queens Road Baptist Church and later to Kaiserslautern, Germany to teach. After her journey to Europe, she returned to her home in Panama City, where she continued to seek more education- receiving an Associate Degree from Gulf Coast Community College in 1975. Miss Reed retired in 1987 from employment as a nurse and office manager in the field of medicine, after having worked for Dr’s Wager, Provan and Traxler.
In 1998-1999 Indonesia offered a challenge to serve, whereby Miss Billie welcomed the opportunity to work with and teach the word of God to the Indonesians. She has continued to serve her church and community and served on the Board of Directors at the Baptist Christian Service Center. Her two favorite passages of scripture have been Romans 8:28 and Proverbs 3: 5&6.
Her closing thoughts to ponder are found in Psalm 23: The Lord is my Shepherd, I have not needed. He made green pastures for me to lie in. Still waters provide peaceful rest for my soul.
Paths of righteousness, he has guided me into, for his name’s sake. I’ve walked through deep, sunless days and shadows of death. These have been growing pains as I learned not to fear because I knew you were with me and your rod protected me from evil.
A table was prepared for me in the presence of enemies, but you anointed me with oil and my cup ran over with protection and love. Goodness, mercy and love have been gifts to me throughout my days here, so now I will dwell in the house of my Lord, forever in his presence. Just think of our grand reunion in Heaven!
‘Til we meet again, I love all of you. Billie is survived by her brother, Jim and his wife Betty of Huntington, West Virginia; a sister, Mickie, of Anchorage, Alaska; along with several nieces and nephews. She leaves behind generations of special people that she ‘adopted’ along her life’s journey.
She was preceded in death by her father, William H. Reed; mother, Lou Ella Reed; sister, Elizabeth Reed Massey. Funeral services will be held on Tuesday March 5, 2019 at 11 am in the Wilson Funeral Home Chapel with Rev. Clyde Ellison officiating.
The family will receive friends at the funeral home from 10-11 am prior to the service. At her request, Billie will be laid to rest in Sunset Memorial Cemetery in Beckley, West Virginia with her loved ones.
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