John Edward Reid

John Edward Reid was born on July 5, 1947, to John and Bernice (Benjamin) Reid in Seattle, Washington, and spent his childhood in the Greenwood neighborhood.
In 1966, he enlisted in the United States Air Force as an Airman and had a 20-year career serving his country, advancing to the officer ranks and retiring with the rank of Captain in 1986. During that time, he logged more than 4000 flight hours on C-141A transports in the Pacific theater as an Aircraft Loadmaster, led a contingent of American military police at Comox (BC) Air Force base, and closed out his career as a professor
teaching ROTC cadets at University of Minnesota-Duluth.
Upon retiring, he moved with his family back to the Pacific Northwest, settling in Ferndale, WA. For the next four years he was a businessman, operating a print shop in downtown Bellingham. After that, he made another career change as real estate agent, eventually opening a real estate brokerage in Ferndale. He and his agents helped many people buy and sell homes through the years. He was truly a man of the community and always seemed to bump into people who knew him when he was out and about.
Throughout his life he was an avid fisherman, hunter, and golfer. He was also quite good at racquetball, winning several tournaments and spending some time as a racquetball instructor at Western Washington University. Through it all, he was an amazing father to his children, giving them memories they will cherish and laugh about
for years. This included signing them up for sports they didn’t want to participate in and embarrassing them in front of their friends by playing grab ass with their mom.
John passed away peacefully at home on February 22, 2025, at the age of 77. He is survived by his wife of 55 years, Patricia (Shamek) Reid, his daughter Wendy (Craig) Rinas, his sons Aaron (Heather), Adam (Chandra), and Nathan (Sara), and 14 grandchildren. He is also survived by his brother Duane (Maria) Reid, his sisters Debbie
Hanson and Margie (Keith) Luttrell.
The family would like to thank Whatcom Hospice, especially John’s nurse Stacy, for all their support during John’s final months. They were a much-needed lifeline for us while we were John’s caregivers and made sure he was always comfortable.