Obituary of Norma Irene Reid

April 11, 1935 - December 14, 2024

Norma passed away peacefully at the Glebe Centre in Ottawa at the age of 89 due to complications from dementia. Born in Roslin, Ontario, Norma was the daughter of Annie and Arthur Bates. She was pre-deceased by her husband Douglas Reid, her oldest son Terry, her parents, her brother Donald, and her sisters Isabelle and Mary (John Mowat, deceased). She leaves her sisters-in-law Eleanor Bates, Sharon Prevost, and Beverley Erwin, and brother-in-law Doug Harris; children Bob (Kerri), Steven, and Jeff (Tracy); grandchildren Christopher, Jennifer (Brian Smith), Lindsay (Liam Ambrose), Bradley, and Valerie; great granddaughter Blake; and many nieces and nephews.

The youngest member of a farm family, Norma was told by her father to stay away from the barn so as not to scare the cows. She attended a two-room schoolhouse for primary school, and high school at Belleville Collegiate Institute. Academically precocious, she received her bachelor’s degree from Queen’s University in 1955 at the age of 20 before embarking on a career as a secondary school teacher, first at Quinte Secondary School in Belleville and later at Carleton Place High School. She loved being a teacher and she was very proud of her students. She also possessed an impressive repertoire of student ‘impressions’ that she could perform on demand.

With Doug and four active boys, Norma’s life away from school was filled with cooking, baking, sewing, home decorating, entertaining, golf, and curling. She enjoyed March break trips south with family and friends and summer vacation time at the family cottage in Barry’s Bay, Ontario. She loved her neighbours in Almonte, Ontario and on Kintail Court in Stittsville.

A woman of great faith, Norma was a life-long congregant of the Anglican Church. In Belleville, she was a member of Christ Church Cathedral and St. Paul’s Anglican Church (Roslin). Later she became an active member of St. Paul’s Anglican Church in Kanata. Her faith was tested when her oldest son, Terry, died in an automobile accident in 1975 (at the age of 19). The pain and difficulty of that situation strengthened her spirituality, eventually allowing her to pick up the pieces and move forward. She faced her illness with courage and stoicism developed through these prior life challenges.

Norma’s family is grateful for the many wonderful caregivers who looked after Norma over the past few years, especially Edel, Aurora, and Diana, as well as staff at the Colonel By Retirement Home and the Glebe Centre.

A funeral service will take place on Thursday, January 2, 2025, at 2:00 PM at St. Paul’s Anglican Church, 20 Young Road in Kanata. Refreshments will be served in the church hall immediately following the service. Burial will take place in Spring 2025 in Roslin, Ontario.