Jimmy Reeder Remembered

When Jimmy Reeder retired from Patrick Henry Elementary School in 1986, he left with a scrapbook full of personal messages from students. They recounted favorite memories, such as how the former principal, a proud quarter-Cherokee tribal member, had often appeared in full headdress at school activities and how he liked to teach them Cherokee words.

Mr. Reeder had an affectionate habit of giving each student a nickname - something they would never forget. The 22-year veteran of Tulsa Public Schools was humbled by the memories that grown former students would share at reunions. "That is my greatest memory - that the kids would remember me," Reeder once told the Tulsa World. Jimmy Lee Reeder, who was the principal at Patrick Henry for 16 years died this year at 81.

After retiring in 1986, Jimmy served as the Tulsa Public Schools District 5 Board member seat from 1987 to 1992 and was President of the Board in 1990-91. Reeder, who grew up in Bristow and was the youngest of nine children, followed his five older brothers into education after he graduated from what is now the University of Central Oklahoma in Edmond.

The Reeder clan's tie to UCO is so impressive - 21 family members have graduated from there altogether, 19 of whom became teachers - that they were honored in 2001 as the first recipients of the new UCO Family of the Year award. Reeder's wife, Billie Reeder, said, "It started with Jimmy's oldest brother. Each brother went and then would help the next."

Reeder was passionate about his Indian heritage. He served on the Board of Trustees of Indian Health Care Resource Center for over 20 years and, in 2009, was recognized as the AARP Elder of the Year for the Cherokee Nation.

As a boy, Jimmy shot baskets on an iron rim nailed to the family barn - his affection for athletics stayed with him all his life. In his later years, he participated in the Oklahoma Senior Olympics and played basketball with a team of older people who advanced to five national tournaments in 10 years.

A devoted member of the First Baptist Church, Jimmy Reeder most recently served as the Director of Senior Adults. After retirement from Patrick Henry, he attended reunions and served as President of the Patrick Henry Foundation. When he ran into former students around town, he could always make them smile. He never forgot a nickname.