To each is given a measure of time. Reid's allotment, while shorter than wished for, was richly blessed. He was born in Hamlet, North Carolina and liked to tell how he started piano lessons with his mother at the age of 3, began accompanying the church choir as a six-year-old, played his first solo recital at 8 and began teaching beginners in his piano teacher's studio when 9. He was 11 when he performed his first piano concerto and soon after won his first national piano competition.                   
 

Reid attended Boston University where he studied with the legendary pedagogue Leonard Shure, assistant to Artur Schnabel. He was awarded a full scholarship to pursue his Master of Music degree at the Juilliard School where he studied with Sascha Gorodnitzski. He studied for two years at the Hochschule für Music in Vienna and complete his doctoral degree at the University of Minnesota where his dissertation was an in-depth study of the Chopin Etudes.
 

Solo and concert performances took Reid across the United Stated for eight seasons under Colombia Artists Management. Two favorite programs he presented were an evening of B minor - combining the Liszt Sonata with the Chopin 3rd, and combining the Chopin Etudes Op. 10 and Brahms/Paganini Book I on the first half with the Chopin Etudes Op. 25 and Brahms/Paganini Book II for the second half.
 

Reid was the piano soloist for the chamber music program of the Cleveland Orchestra's Blossom Festival for three years, and appeared in New York, Philadelphia, Cleveland, and other major cities with the Si-Yo Music Society.

Reid and LaWayne met in 1991, and, when not performing or teaching, Reid indulged his passion for gardening at their home in Dellwood. He planned and planted an extensive garden which included restoration of a wetland and creation of a hillside prairie. A major highlight was having their garden featured in the Star Tribune. Reid maintained over 25 bird houses of all sizes and was immensely proud when the National Wildlife Federation awarded their property an Advanced Certification as a Bird-Friendly Habitat. Reid wrote poetry, was an outstanding chef and loved to entertain. Reid and LaWayne were especially honored to host, for many years, the jury dinners for the International E-Competition.
 

Reid enjoyed the final weeks of his life at home, surrounded by the love and devotion of friends and students with much talk, music, laughter, and tears. He passed away at Our Lady of Peace Hospice Center on the morning of July 11 at the age of 67.