Kenneth Harlan Reid

Kenneth Harlan Reid, 68, passed away at home in his sleep on April 4, 2017. A former principal at Olive Branch Middle School for many years, Ken was known to generations of OBMS students who remember his booming laugh, the way he used to greet each kid as they entered the school every morning, and of course, the “Vulcan nerve pinch” he used on the shoulders of many students as he greeted them.

Born in Bruce, MS in 1948 to Winton and Sammie Reid, Ken was the youngest of three children. He graduated from Olive Branch High School in 1966, the same year he saw the Beatles in concert at the Mid-South Coliseum (“You couldn’t hear the music because of all the girls screaming,” he grumbled whenever he retold the story, but he remained a lifetime Beatles fan). He graduated from the University of Mississippi in 1970 with degrees in English and History.

While at Ole Miss, he met and fell in love with Susan Quarterman, and married her in 1971. Despite an unfortunate run-in with a deer on their wedding night that totaled Susan’s Mercury Cougar, Ken and Susan were very happily married for almost 39 years until Susan’s death in 2010.

Ken worked for DeSoto County Schools for four decades in different capacities: Bus driver, English teacher, Assistant Principal, and Principal, as well as occasional referee for basketball games. In 2004, he went to work at the DCS County Office as the Assistant Superintendent of Education in charge of Business and Finance. He retired in 2011.

Over his lifetime of service to the Olive Branch community, Ken also volunteered as an ambulance driver and emceed the annual Olive Branch Christmas Parade for many years. But most of all, he is remembered fondly by scores of former students -- even the ones he paddled (most of whom admit they deserved it).

Ken was predeceased by his parents, older brother, and wife. He is survived by his daughters, Natalie Cooper (Adam), Samantha Rayburn (Wes), his sister Jo Brans (Willem), and seven grandchildren. The family will receive friends on Sunday, April 9, 2017 from 12pm until the memorial service begins at 2pm, all at Brantley Funeral Home, 6875 Cockrum St. Olive Branch, MS 38654. The family requests that in lieu of flowers, donations should be made to Wings Cancer Foundation.