Love, Loss, and Life

Today would have been my son Reid's 34th birthday. I want to share with you an article written by Amanda Allis from Taste of Pittsburgh Magazine. This article about my son was published this past summer.

Love, Loss and Life The Legacy of Reid Marshall

Loss and mourning are things that we will all experience over the course of a lifetime. These experiences leave an imprint on your life. When a loss occurs later in a person’s life you often hear “they lived a good long life” or “what a blessing to have lived so long.” But the loss of a young person cannot be as easily explained. One such

loss is that of Reid Marshall.

During his senior year at Peters Township High School Reid was involved in a car accident that tragically took his life. Unfortunately, the boys in the car were not wearing their seatbelts and with the impact of the collision the air bag deployed and sadly is what caused his death. News of his passing shook the entire community. Over the time that he was in the hospital there was an overwhelming outpouring of support and comfort. At first his family was certain that he would be okay as medical advances have made it much more realistic that you could survive

a crash. Then came the news from the doctors and neurosurgeons that nothing could be done. The thought that he may be gone was completely incomprehensible. Still holding out hope that he could come back to them Reid’s family watched for any signs of life – a jump in the monitor, his eyes opening or any sign of movement that he might possibly be staying with them. Sadly, that was not the case.

Reid’s family was confronted by their son’s inevitable fate and filled with total disbelief and heartache. Just 24 hours prior to the accident their son was a kind, vibrant and loving young man. He was referred to as a teddy bear because of his warm and compassionate nature. He was a salt of the earth young man who had a kind word for everyone. He was an avid golfer who took part in many tournaments with both other children and adults. He also loved to play baseball, soccer and basketball. From a young age had a true ear from music and the piano and by the age of 5 or 6 he was able to play more than twenty songs by memory. At an age where most kids are dreaming of their futures and finally leaving home Reid was planning to go to Washington and Jefferson College so that he could stay at home with his family. He was a very deep thinker and extremely intelligent. He had plans of going into real estate and following in his mother’s footsteps. Frequently he would sit down with his family and have long talks and would always have a million questions. All of which they would gladly spend hours talking about. He also spent time working with children’s organizations and loved to be around children. Now his family was faced with the truth that Reid would never graduate from high school or go to college. He would never have the opportunity to walk down the aisle at his wedding or to see the joy in his own children’s faces. Through this came much heartache and a questioning of why was Reid taken? The pain and disbelief were almost unbearable, but his family’s faith was able to help them to continue on after their loss. Once they were able to see through the fog of disbelief that this had actually happened they started to not only mourn his loss, but to celebrate his life and all that he had given to them during his brief time on Earth. Their faith allowed them a chance to remember the funny things that Reid had done and how kind and warm he had been. These things also helped to keep his memory alive.

The life of Reid Marshall was short, but very full. Through faith and time his family has learned to celebrate his life and the time that they were blessed with together. As a memorial to their

son the Marshalls give a scholarship each year to a Peters Township High School graduate who has demonstrated their commitment to the community and in working with children. 

Reid had been an organ donor as was everyone else in his family. Through this the CORE program was able to make sure that his organs were able to be used

to save the life of someone else’s loved one. They facilitated the donation of his organs and through letters to the recipients the family was able to meet those who had received his heart and kidney. This emotional meeting allowed them to see a part of their son living on. Being blessed with the opportunity to meet with them helped the process of healing to continue. That along with support groups and read ing many books on loss. One in particular that was helpful in working through their grief was the book “Embraced by the Light”. The book gave them the feeling that God was truly looking over us. They also learned that you should never let a day go by without telling your family and friends that you love them and how much they mean to you. Life is short and fleeting and we never know how much time we will be blessed with on Earth, but you should use every minute to its fullest.