Donnie Reid's Obituary
Donnie Ray Reid, 72, of Denver, NC passed on from this life to a much better one in the early morning hours of Friday, June 9, 2023 with his wife Bethanie and stepson Brandon by his side. He was born July 14, 1950 in Mecklenburg County to the late Charles and LaRue Reid.
Survivors include his wife Bethanie Capell, stepson Brandon and mother-in-law JoAnn; siblings, Neal Reid and wife Emily of Denver, Brenda Scott and husband Dean of Iron Station and Linda Beatty and husband Tom of Denver. Donnie is also survived by a daughter, Michelle Reid Of Charleston, SC.
He also leaves behind his very special nephew Brad Beatty and wife Heidi; nieces Jennifer Bundy and son Alex, Neely Moody and husband Justin and daughter Norah, Abby Heilman and husband Charlie, and Charliann Viviano and husband Stephen and son Owen.
For almost nine years, Donnie faced cancer just as he did every other challenge in his life, with the grit and determination to overcome even the most insurmountable problem. If there was a way to fix it, he would make it happen. Far outliving a prostate cancer prognosis from 2014, he was later diagnosed with MDS (bone marrow failure) in October, 2021, with a prognosis of only a few months. The progression to AML (Acute Myeloid Leukemia) was discovered in November, 2022 and he was promptly begun on chemotherapy treatment at MD Anderson. During treatment, Donnie kept his mind busy making plans for multiple projects, and between treatments traveling back and forth to Houston, he worked on those projects, no matter how bad he felt.
Donnie was a notorious problem solver and over the years was often called upon by local Charlotte construction and demolition companies to come up with an answer for problems which seemed to have no solution. He never disappointed. He took great pride in all the work he did and never did anything half way.
Donnie had an unquenchable love for animals, working tirelessly in big dog rescue, and for most of his adult life rescued numerous dogs, birds, squirrels, cats, bunnies and anything else that needed help. The bigger dogs always held a special place in his heart, and he leaves behind to grieve his absence his four last rescues: Cooper (his Tripod), Luke (the Muttdoodle) and Bertie (the Flying Nun), as well as Sigourney, his beautiful fur ball of a cat. They each had their own special relationship with Donnie, but Cooper & Donnie were especially two peas in a pod, inseparable even throughout their cancer journeys, enduring chemo treatments together.
Throughout his entire treatment process, in typical Donnie fashion, he never stopped entertaining all the doctors, nurses and care teams with stories, pictures and videos of his numerous rescues. He especially got a big kick out of watching everyone erupt into laughter at the video of Luke getting a face plant by Florence the squirrel. He continued to be the life of the party even during the last week of his life.
Donnie was an incredibly caring and compassionate person who gave deeply of himself to everyone he met, whether family, friend or stranger, and his absence from our lives will be felt deeply for years to come.
The family would sincerely like to thank all the staff and care teams at both Levine Cancer Institute Charlotte and MD Anderson Houston. The compassion, care and genuine concern from everyone involved in his treatment at both facilities, from housekeeping & techs to oncologists & specialists, all took the best care of Donnie & made his last months so much better than they may have been otherwise. Every one of them made a difference by the respect and love they showed him and Bethanie during this time. You are all deeply appreciated.
A service to honor Donnie’s life will be held on his birthday, Friday, July 14th at the family home in Denver. Please look to https://www.caringbridge.org/visit/ donniereid for further specific details as they become available.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be sent in Donnie's honor to the following:
caringbridge.org
givenowlls.org
worldbirdsanctuary.org
James Funeral Home of Huntersville is serving the family.
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