Warner Robins pastor Reid dies

“I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” -- 2 Timothy 4:7

WARNER ROBINS -- The Rev. Willie Reid Sr., pastor of Fellowship Bible Baptist Church, was remembered by family and friends for his love, his faith, his inspiration, his endurance and his humor.

Reid, 60, died Friday afternoon at the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Fla., from kidney failure, his family said. His funeral service is at 11 a.m. Tuesday at the church at 431 Dunbar Road, Warner Robins. The Rev. Craig Oliver is officiating.

His family members were able to gather by his bedside before he drew his last breath, said his wife, Gloria Reid, by telephone Saturday morning.

“No. 1, he was a great friend,” she said. “He was a great husband. He was a great family man. He was a great pastor. He was great in everything he did.”

She and the couple’s three adult children were en route Saturday to Valdosta State University for the youngest son’s graduation. Ryan Reid received a bachelor’s degree in fine arts with a concentration in mass media.

Having all of his children graduate from college was important to Willie Reid, said his daughter, Lorea Reid. The other son is Willie Reid Jr.

“That was the biggest thing for him -- for us to do well,” she said. “He was a great father.”

Reid was also remembered for inspiring others -- especially for his positive, never-give-up attitude and enduring faith in God in spite of suffering from health issues for years. He battled bladder cancer in 2009. His leg was amputated in 2010 due to diabetes and poor circulation. He had a liver transplant in 2001.

“He taught us all how to have faith,” said his sister-in-law Carol Reid.

Reid was also remembered for his humor.

“He was just a lot of fun to be around,” his daughter Lorea Reid noted.

The Rev. Harvey Bee, pastor of Christian Fellowship Church, considered Reid more than a friend of 23 years. Reid was his “spiritual father.”

Bee explained that Reid was a mentor who spoke into his life. He gave him spiritual guidance and counseling and helped him get started in the ministry.

“He really made an impact on my life, and he’s touched the lives of so many others,” Bee said. “He loved his family ... He died doing what he loved: preaching the word of God and winning souls. He fought the good fight, kept the faith and finished his course.”

The Rev. Daryl Vining, pastor of Hebron Fellowship Baptist Church and a former youth pastor at Fellowship Bible Baptist Church, characterized Reid as more than a close friend of 20 years.

“He’s my father in ministry,” Vining said. “He baptized me.”

Vining remembered Reid as “a visionary and an inspirational person to many people.”

“He helped many people to begin to dream again and to visualize and see their own possibility through their relationship with God,” Vining said. “He will be greatly missed.”

Henry Hopson, president of the board of trustees for Fellowship Bible Baptist Church, said he’s known Reid nearly 29 years.

“Other than being just a dynamic pastor and great friend and mentor, he was a visionary. He was a living legend,” Hopson said. “He had the ability to encourage and to motivate. But the biggest thing he did for the church family other than teaching the word of God was that he gave us, as a family, hope and direction for the future.

“The Bible states that without a vision, the people perish,” Hopson said. “He gave us a vision for the church family. We were always on a course to accomplish something great ... We were always striving toward the next goal in ministry.”

Reid founded Fellowship Bible Baptist Church more than 31 years ago.

The Eatonton native started the church in the old Buzzell Village once located on Watson Boulevard between Warner Robins and Centerville. The church moved to Dunbar Road a couple of years later.

The church has grown to include three small to large sanctuaries -- including the 2,500-seat Faith Dome, as well as educational facilities and other buildings.

But Reid told the Telegraph in December 2011 that the foundation he was most proud of didn’t involve concrete, bricks or mortar.

“When you’re the founding pastor of a church, you have to come out of the ground,” he said. “You have to do it on a solid foundation. It’s work, but it’s worth it, and I’m not talking about building, the buildings you see. I’m talking about building people on the Bible, God’s word. That’s what’s important. The real deal is people’s hearts. None of these buildings will get to heaven, but people will. People need to know Jesus as savior and lord. He’s done so much for us.”

Reid also told The Telegraph that the highlight of his life and ministry was the 38 years he’s been married to Gloria Reid.

Reid attended Fort Valley State University. He received a bachelor’s degree in theology from Gulf Coast Seminary in Panama City, Fla. He also received an honorary doctorate’s degree in divinity from the Gospel Ministry Outreach Theological Institute in Houston, Texas.

Information from Telegraph archives were used in this article. To contact writer Becky Purser, call 256-9559.

This story was originally published May 5, 2012 at 2:52 PM with the headline "Warner Robins pastor Reid dies."