Mabel Louise (Tomlin) Reed, 89, beloved wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, sister, and aunt passed away on September 8, 2022 in Bloomington, IN in the comforting presence of her family.

Mabel was born in Linn County, MO to Howard Glenn and Wilna E (Neal) Tomlin on March 6, 1933. She graduated as the senior class valedictorian from Linneus High School in Linneus, MO and went on to study at the University of Missouri on scholarship, where she played on the women’s varsity basketball team, was a member of Kappa Epsilon Alpha, freshman women’s honorary, and Phi Upsilon Omicron, home economics honorary. After receiving her BS degree, she continued on to receive her MS in Dietetics. Education played a fundamental and important part throughout Mabel’s life. She worked as a registered dietitian in Kirksville and Macon, MO.

She married Thomas Schrock Reed on December 7, 1958 in Linneus for a marriage that would last nearly 60 years and together they became the parents of five children. In addition to her dietitian positions, Mabel also served as the organist for the First Christian Church in Kirksville for many years. Music brought much joy to Mabel’s life whether it was playing in the evenings with Tom, teaching piano lessons, playing for the church, or listening to her children practice as she cleaned the kitchen after dinner. She was always quick to give encouragement to budding musicians by explaining that the best musicians couldn’t be everywhere, so they should go ahead and play anyway.

Her Christian faith was a fundamental part of Mabel’s life as she would tell the story of encountering Jesus during a bout of scarlet fever at the age of 7. She would recount how she held His hand and He told her to take care of the unfortunate people in the world. This message was imprinted upon her heart and became her life’s focus. Mabel was kind, selfless, gentle and a compassionate listener for all. She was never too busy to provide support to her family or to take a phone call from someone in need.

Those who knew her best also knew that alongside her gentleness of spirit, came an unrivaled strength of spirit, which fueled her seemingly limitless energy. No one had more grit than Mabel—whether it was helping the coaches teach the young boys of Linneus how to properly play baseball, getting the farm chores done, striving in her own education while tutoring others to their full potential, sharing her immense gift of music on the organ after long work weeks, serving as President multiple terms in her local PEO chapter, leading the local 4-H group, spending countless hours working in the garden and teaching her family the importance of caring for God’s earth, or volunteering for a multitude of community and church service works. All of this plus raising five children and working full time. Her love of life and intent to serve were boundless.

At the end of the day however, Mabel’s greatest joy was her family. She loved being a sister, aunt, mother, grandmother and great-grandmother. From the extended family Easter gatherings in Laclede to the Labor Day get-togethers in Linneus, Mabel was always on the ready with the red cooler filled with food to share, much of which came from her immense garden (taken care of after a long day at the hospital), and especially at Easter, all would enjoy her sugar cookies. Family visits always involved her famous coffee cake and an abundance of activity in the kitchen. However, she was never too busy to make biscuits with a grandchild or back in the day, to slip Duchess, the family dog, a few treats.

Mabel was preceded in death by her husband, Thomas Reed, grandson, Matthew Reed, her sister and brother-in-law, Elizabeth and Leland Buckman, and her father and mother. She is survived by her brother, John (Dorothy) Tomlin, of Sumner, MO, and sister, Evelyn Huffman, of Madison, WI.

Also surviving are her five children. Scott (Cindy) Reed of Grayslake, IL, Ann (Charles) Ellis of West Chester, PA, Russell (Jennifer) Reed of St. Peters, MO, Ben (Tammy) Reed of Kirksville and Laurel (Dr. Robert) Adams of Bloomington, IN, and her 15 grandchildren - Dr. Michael, Daniel, David, Christine (Chuck McGowan) Johnny, Jeremiah (Samantha), Patrick, Mathew, Sarah, Arabelle, Peres, Katherine, Carson, Josh, and Liam as well as 11 great-grandchildren and many nieces and nephews.

Visitation for family and friends will be held at Travis-Noe Funeral Home, 1008 West Potter Avenue in Kirksville, MO on Friday, Sept. 16, 2022 from 5:00 to 7:00 PM.

The funeral service will be held at the First Christian Church, 100 North High Street in Kirksville, MO on Saturday, Sept, 17, 2022 at 1:00 PM. Burial will follow at Jenkins Cemetery in Browning, MO.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Alzheimer's Association. Donations may be left at or mailed to Travis-Noe Funeral Home, P.O. Box 306, Kirksville, MO 63501.