Anna Katherine “Kate” Reel of Lexington, Virginia passed in the early morning hours on
December 23, 2017. Born on January 20, 1924 in Bridgeport, Illinois to Earl R. McCracken and
Minnie Mills McCracken, Kate left home to attend Good Samaritan Hospital School of Nursing in
Vincennes, Indiana. Being a nurse was the greatest pride of her life other than marrying Morris Reel and raising their two sons, Robert M. Reel and Richard E. Reel. She supervised the night shift at Good Samaritan Hospital as charge nurse for 18 years followed by several years as the operating room recovery room charge nurse until her retirement. She embodied the Midwestern trait of earnestness with constant devotion to her family and profession.
Kate was an avid lover of nature and history. She spent much of her retired time volunteering at Grouseland, the historic home of William Henry Harrison the ninth president of the United States, and being an active member of the Francis Vigo Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution. She also diligently worked on her passion for genealogy. Her family will forever be grateful for the impressively accurate and detailed family history she has left behind.
While Indiana would always be home, she joined her eldest son’s family later in life in the Blue Ridge Valley of Virginia, where she never took for granted the opportunity to live among the mountains. She became a wellknown staple of the Lexington landscape by adopting, Albert the Welsh Corgi. Together, they never met a stranger during their walks throughout town.
She was preceded in death by her husband Morris Reel and son, Robert M. Reel. She will be dearly missed by son Richard E. Reel, his wife Mary Reel, and their daughter Kristin Gerber, her husband Matt, and their sons Evan and Grant, her daughterinlaw Emily S. Reel, grandson Andrew M. Reel, his wife Elizabeth A. Reel and their sons Walker M. Reel, Carter C.Reel, and
Andrew M. Reel Jr., and grandson Adam L. Reel.The family would like to thank Havenwood
Assisted Living Facility and staff for the loving care they provided Kate during her last years of life.
Friends may visit with Kate’s family from 1:00 – 2:00 on Friday, at Goodwin Funeral Home. Her funeral service will begin at 2:00 at the funeral home. Interment will follow in Memorial Park Cemetery.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorial gifts be sent to William Henry Harrison’s
Grouseland, 3 West Scott Street, Vincennes, IN 47591. Online condolences may be sent to the family through goodwinfamilyfh.com
