According to the Bible, people who have faith just the size of a mustard seed can move mountains. Catherine Reed has moved through lifeís victories and challenges, including traveling the world as a military wife and the loss of a daughter, because of her strong faith. Born Aug. 24, 1938, just prior to World War II, Reed grew up on her grandparentsí farm near Fresno, California. ìThere were always fresh vegetables and chickens and eggs,î she said. ìIt was a wonderful time.î Reedís parents ran a local theater in Clovis, California. Her father served in WW II.In 1948, Reed became a big sister. Two years later, her family built a home in Clovis, California, and her father began working as a carpenter in the housing industry. ìHousing was exploding because of all the GIís returning from World War II,î she said. ìIt was a marvelous, momentous time for the nation.îWhen the housing market started to die off, Reedís father went to work for the utility company, Southern California Edison. The company built 32 new homes along the foothills of Yosemite National Park to house its employees and offered one of those homes to the Reed family. ìIt was beautiful, but very isolated,î she said. ìYou had to ride over an hour on the school bus just to get to school.îReed graduated from Sierra Joint Union High School in 1957. She had planned to attend Fresno State University to become a teacher, but that changed after her cousin arranged a blind date for Reed with Franklin ìDaleî Reed, an airman in the United States Air Force. He swept her off her feet. ìIt was wonderful,î Reed said. ìHe was so respectful and so polite. He was just a terrific guy.î After only four months of dating, the two married Sept. 11, 1947, in Las Vegas, and lived near his family in San Diego. When her husband received orders to go to Okinawa, Japan, for 18 months; Reed returned to Fresno to be near her family. While in Fresno, she worked as a bookkeeper for a bank.In 1959, shortly after Dale Reed returned from Japan, the couple moved to Charleston, South Carolina. While there, the Reeds welcomed their first child, Franklin David. They stayed in South Carolina a year before Dale was assigned to a remote radar site in Alaska. Reed and her son returned to the Fresno area. After one year, Dale Reed rejoined the family, and they moved to Thomasville, Alabama.In 1963, while living in Alabama, Reed felt the ripple effects of the civil rights movement. ìThere was so much disagreement,î she said. Reed found some comfort in her church, Thomasville Baptist Church, where she taught Sunday school. ìI remember sitting in the Sunday School class and people saying, ëThese things are going to change, and we know that, and we donít like it; and we donít know what to do about it,íî she said.After three years of living in the South, the family moved to England. ìThe Beatles came in to the New York airport, as we were leaving to go to England,î she said. She didnít get to see them, however.Reed said it was difficult for military families to find housing in England. ìI would babysit for some of the women who would go out looking for housing,î she said. ì(One familyís) children had German measles, and I was pregnant and was exposed.î At full-term, Reedís daughter weighed only three pounds at birth and stayed in the hospital for several months. The family moved to be closer to the hospital to be near their daughter, Caroline Diane. Doctors eventually discovered the baby had a hole in her heart. Caroline lived just three months, and passed away July 15, 1965.In 1966, the Reeds moved to Stewart Air Force Base, New York, for three years before going to San Diego. ìWe moved our mobile home to San Diego while Dale was in a remote in Alaska,î she said. Reed enjoyed living closer to family and found comfort and strength in her faith. ìI was so hungry for the Lord,î she said. ìAnd he helped heal a lot of wounds of losing a baby and being alone a lot.î After a year, Dale Reed returned from Alaska, and the family moved to Havre, Montana. ìThose people were pioneers who settled up the land,î she said. ìThese women and children were left on the farm. Some of them still spoke German. It was a difficult life.î Reed found a church where she taught Sunday school, youth and Vacation Bible School. In 1971, the Reeds moved to Colorado Springs, Colorado. Shortly after they arrived, Dale Reed deployed to Vietnam, while Reed found a bookkeeping job at Pikes Peak Bank. When he returned from the war, Dale worked at Ent Air Force Base in downtown Colorado Springs.The family purchased a home in Widefield in 1973, and Dale continued working at Ent AFB until he was sent to Guam in 1977, for his last tour. The Reeds lived two years in Guam before they returned to Colorado. Dale retired from the United States Air Force after serving more than 27 years. Shortly after retiring, Dale began having health issues. ìHis leg wouldnít stop shaking, and he couldnít sleep at night,î Reed said. ìHe would have to walk around in circles in the house until he got totally exhausted before he could lie down and rest.î Dale thought it was a heart condition and saw numerous specialists, until a neurologist diagnosed him with Parkinsonís.In 1979, the couple sold their house in Widefield and bought 5 acres of land in Falcon.The Reeds started their own business refinishing furniture and repairing items to sell at a Colorado Springs flea market. ìWe sold a lot of different things,î she said, adding that her husband could ìput together any bicycle you wanted.î They also repaired vacuum cleaners and refinished baby furniture. ìYou name it, we did it,î Reed said. ìI never dreamed I would be doing that.î They were in business 15 years.In 2010, Dale Reed passed away, but Reed stays active in two local support groups for those affected by Parkinsonís. She also participates in various activities with Falcon Senior Services, and is a member of the Fountain Valley Senior Center Harmonizers. Reed said she enjoys Women of the Word Bible study at her church. ìHe (God) has helped me to get through many things ñ- 53 years of married life, traveling the world and going through things.î
