Christine "Kitty" Reed

CHRISTINE REED Tupelo - Christine "Kitty" Thornton Reed of Tupelo died February 22, 2015, at North Mississippi Medical Center Hospice after several years of declining health. She was born June 28, 1931, in Hong Kong, China, to Grace Davis Thornton of Hopkinsville, KY and Joseph Presly Thornton of Pensacola, FL. Her father was stationed in China with Standard Oil, but with the start of WWII the family had to refugee to the Philippines, later moving to Los Angeles, CA. After the death of Presly Thornton in 1945, her mother, Grace, relocated the family to Hopkinsville, KY, to be near maternal grandparents, Mr. and Mrs. Odie Davis, and also beloved aunt and uncle, Col. and Mrs. Gilmer M. Bell. After graduating high school, Kitty attended the University of Kentucky and Ringling College of Art in Sarasota, FL. Through her sister, Grace Wallace of Tupelo, she met William Raymond Reed. They were married in 1953 and Kitty embraced her new home of Tupelo. She was a member of First United Methodist Church, serving for many years in the Altar Guild. She and Mrs. Helga Thomas created the church's first Chrismon tree. She served several years in the Tupelo Junior Auxiliary. She enjoyed her many years of work with the Prairie Council of the Girl Scouts of America, including work in the 1970's with Mrs. Lucinda Washington and others. She was a longtime member of the Fortnightly Matinee Club. A strong advocate of the arts, she helped form the Tupelo Artist Guild. She and her husband were among the original supporters of the Tupelo Symphony Orchestra. In later life, she resumed her education at the Memphis College of Art and became an accomplished painter, represented by the Bingham and Kurtz galleries in Memphis, TN. She enjoyed judging local children's art competitions, as well as gardening, needlework, cooking, and entertaining. She also served on the Board of Directors of Reed Manufacturing Company for many years. She dearly loved friends in her sewing club and the Thursday night dinner group. She loved the Labrador retrievers her husband raised through the years, especially Rowdy. She was preceded in death by her parents; her husband, William R. Reed of Tupelo; and her sisters, Grace Thornton Wallace of Tupelo and Lisa Thornton McCamic of Wheeling, WV. She is survived by daughters, Susan Reed Nelson (Edward) of Tupelo, Anne Reed Strickland (Peter) of Atlanta, GA., and Helen Reed Collins of Tupelo. She is also survived by grandchildren, William Douglas Richards of Atlanta, GA., Leigh Evelyn Richards of Portland, OR., Amy Catherine Nelson of Sewanee, TN., Laura Christine Collins (fiancé, Robert Stroup) of Memphis, TN., and William Scott Collins, Jr., of St. Louis, MO. She leaves brothers-in-law, Jeremy C. McCamic (Jane) of Wheeling, WV, and Jack Raymond Reed, Sr., of Tupelo, and many beloved nieces and nephews. She is survived by very special friends, Martha Shack of Plantersville, and also Connie Davidson of Saltillo. Her family very sincerely thanks Beth Cary and her caregivers from Oxford Health Care, LaShandrick Jones, Bobbie Carroll, Dee Montgomery, Dawn Briggs, Denise Pulliam, and Mary Betts Spruill. Visitation will be from 1 to 2:30 p.m. on Thursday, February 26, 2015 at W. E. Pegues Funeral Home in Tupelo. Graveside services will be conducted by the Reverend Lynn Mote on Thursday, February 26, 2015 at 3 p.m. at Tupelo Memorial Park. In lieu of flowers the family gratefully requests memorials be made to First United Methodist Church, P.O. Box 854, Tupelo, MS 38802; the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, 26 Broadway, 14th Floor, New York, NY 10004; or the Salvation Army, P.O. Box 706, Tupelo, MS 38801. Expressions of sympathy may be left at www.peguesfuneralhome.com .