Obituary for Lawrence "Larry" Reed
On Wednesday, March 31st 2021, Lawrence “Larry” Reed passed away at the age of 76 after a long battle with Lewy Body Dementia.
Larry was born in Caledonia on May 4, 1944, the oldest child of Margaret (Tennent) and Charles Reed. Larry and his siblings had a wonderful childhood in Taylor, with fond memories of family baseball games on Sunday nights and helping out at the family farm on Sand Hill Road. He was the valedictorian of the Caledonia-Mumford class of 1962 and went on to be the first in his family to earn a college degree at the State University of New York at Buffalo. He met his wife Judy (Woodruff) Reed in Buffalo and they were married on September 2, 1967. Larry started his first teaching job at Leroy Central School less than a week after the wedding, taking over for his former classmate Mary Catherine Hamilton when she went on maternity leave, and he continued to teach seventh grade social studies in Leroy for over thirty years, retiring in 1999.
In addition to teaching, Larry coached many sports including football, basketball, and golf at Leroy, Caledonia-Mumford, and Churchville-Chili. He was inducted into the Leroy Sports Hall of Fame in 2018 in honor of his time as a golf coach. He started umpiring Little League games as a teenager, and eventually became a member and officer of the Genesee Valley Umpires Association. He was inducted into their Hall of Fame in 2014.
Larry spent many summers working as a park supervisor for the Caledonia Parks Department both at Hamilton and Washburn parks. Many Caledonia residents remember Larry’s teasing and wiffleball leagues at Washburn throughout the 1970s and 1980s.
Golfing was one of Larry’s passions and he was an early member of the Caledonia Country Club, eventually taking on a role as groundskeeper. He was a stalwart member of the Monday and Thursday night leagues, and golfed almost every Sunday morning with his regular group. He also bowled in multiple leagues at Cal Bowl and traveled to bowling tournaments around the region. Larry also served as an usher at St. Columba’s church for many years.
After losing Judy suddenly in 2005 after thirty-eight happy years of marriage, Larry was lucky enough to find a loving companion in Pamela Rowland. Together, they enjoyed watching Larry’s grandsons play sports for Caledonia, cheering on Larry’s beloved New York Yankees, and taking drives to find a good hot dog or ice cream stand.
Larry was preceded in death by his father, Charles, his mother, Margaret, and his wife, Judy. He is survived by his longtime loving companion, Pamela Rowland, his son Michael (Erin), his daughter Kim (Jim Durr), and his grandsons Maxwell Reed, Camden Reed, Liam Durr, and Emmett Durr. He is also survived by his siblings Maureen (Casey) Randall, Joyce (David) Eichenberger, and David (Lee) Reed, and many nieces and nephews, along with members of Judy’s and Pam’s families and numerous friends. Special thanks to Wendy Chapman and Kerry Prentice of Livingston County Hospice.
Due to COVID regulations, service and interment will be held privately. In lieu of flowers, donations may be sent to Patrick Place, 2006 Scottsville-Chili Road, Scottsville, NY 14546 or online at https://patrickplace.org/donate, or to the Stone Church Backpack Ministry at EP Stone Church, 3177 Church St, Caledonia, NY 14423 attn: Backpack Ministry.
The family will hold a celebration of Larry’s life for his family and friends this summer.
Larry was born in Caledonia on May 4, 1944, the oldest child of Margaret (Tennent) and Charles Reed. Larry and his siblings had a wonderful childhood in Taylor, with fond memories of family baseball games on Sunday nights and helping out at the family farm on Sand Hill Road. He was the valedictorian of the Caledonia-Mumford class of 1962 and went on to be the first in his family to earn a college degree at the State University of New York at Buffalo. He met his wife Judy (Woodruff) Reed in Buffalo and they were married on September 2, 1967. Larry started his first teaching job at Leroy Central School less than a week after the wedding, taking over for his former classmate Mary Catherine Hamilton when she went on maternity leave, and he continued to teach seventh grade social studies in Leroy for over thirty years, retiring in 1999.
In addition to teaching, Larry coached many sports including football, basketball, and golf at Leroy, Caledonia-Mumford, and Churchville-Chili. He was inducted into the Leroy Sports Hall of Fame in 2018 in honor of his time as a golf coach. He started umpiring Little League games as a teenager, and eventually became a member and officer of the Genesee Valley Umpires Association. He was inducted into their Hall of Fame in 2014.
Larry spent many summers working as a park supervisor for the Caledonia Parks Department both at Hamilton and Washburn parks. Many Caledonia residents remember Larry’s teasing and wiffleball leagues at Washburn throughout the 1970s and 1980s.
Golfing was one of Larry’s passions and he was an early member of the Caledonia Country Club, eventually taking on a role as groundskeeper. He was a stalwart member of the Monday and Thursday night leagues, and golfed almost every Sunday morning with his regular group. He also bowled in multiple leagues at Cal Bowl and traveled to bowling tournaments around the region. Larry also served as an usher at St. Columba’s church for many years.
After losing Judy suddenly in 2005 after thirty-eight happy years of marriage, Larry was lucky enough to find a loving companion in Pamela Rowland. Together, they enjoyed watching Larry’s grandsons play sports for Caledonia, cheering on Larry’s beloved New York Yankees, and taking drives to find a good hot dog or ice cream stand.
Larry was preceded in death by his father, Charles, his mother, Margaret, and his wife, Judy. He is survived by his longtime loving companion, Pamela Rowland, his son Michael (Erin), his daughter Kim (Jim Durr), and his grandsons Maxwell Reed, Camden Reed, Liam Durr, and Emmett Durr. He is also survived by his siblings Maureen (Casey) Randall, Joyce (David) Eichenberger, and David (Lee) Reed, and many nieces and nephews, along with members of Judy’s and Pam’s families and numerous friends. Special thanks to Wendy Chapman and Kerry Prentice of Livingston County Hospice.
Due to COVID regulations, service and interment will be held privately. In lieu of flowers, donations may be sent to Patrick Place, 2006 Scottsville-Chili Road, Scottsville, NY 14546 or online at https://patrickplace.org/donate, or to the Stone Church Backpack Ministry at EP Stone Church, 3177 Church St, Caledonia, NY 14423 attn: Backpack Ministry.
The family will hold a celebration of Larry’s life for his family and friends this summer.