Jean Aumack Reid passed away peacefully on May 16, two weeks shy of her 90th birthday.
Jean was born at Stamford Hospital on June 1, 1927 to the late Harry and Louise Aumack. She lived in Springdale before moving to Greenwich. She attended Cos Cob School and graduated from Greenwich High School.
Jean often spoke of her childhood fondly. She had a deep and loving relationship with her father. She loved to ice skate and sing and was a true illustrator. Jean was an avid horseback rider and often recalled Cappy, whom she would ride from her stable near Laddins Rock down Sound Beach Avenue and to the beach. She was a welcomed and trusted friend. Her teenage years were very social, filled with group trips and outings.
Her first job was at a local needlework shop, where she transferred designs onto canvases. Eventually Jean took a job as a teller for Greenwich Federal Savings and Loan. At the time, her younger brother Harry worked at the top of Greenwich Avenue as a teller, and he introduced her to a co-worker by the name of Bill Reid. This was a fateful introduction, as the two eventually married in October of 1956, in Williamsburg, Va.
The newlyweds set up house in Greenwich and soon after had two sons, Bill and David. They initially lived in Cos Cob, but when the boys were little moved to Byram. Jean was active at Second Congregational Church, in which she had grown up, and often recalled being able to see several states from up high in the tower on a clear day. She taught Sunday school and ran the junior choir. Jean was also a member of the Greenwich Choral Society. Later, Jean joined the Jehovah’s Witnesses, where she made many close friends.
Jean loved the beach. She recalled walking up and down Tod’s Point while each of her boys were growing in her belly. When the children were young, the Reids took many summer trips and eventually owned a house on Cape Cod. Jean was a true New England gal. She loved to visit historic towns along the coast and had a deep passion for American History.
Jean was a devoted grandmother. She made the best open-faced peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, and special fizzy juice mixtures, always served with a proper straw. Classic toys were her specialty, and she was a delightful lunch date. She crocheted and sang silly songs. Sunday visits on Pilgram Drive were always filled with joy and love, and usually a golf tournament on TV.
Jean and Bill had a long and loving courtship until he passed at 93 in August of 2013. They had a patient and gentle bond, which was particularly poignant in its twilight years.
Nothing, however, brought Jean more joy than her boys. David and Bill spent many an evening together with Jean during her time at Nathaniel Witherell in the last few years. These evenings were filled with conversation and precious confusion, old 60s TV shows and lots of tenderness. Jean loved both her boys unconditionally for all their many talents and qualities of character. It was a gift for the three of them to see so much of one another in her final months.
Jean is also survived by her daughter-in-law, Elizabeth Reid, of Greenwich; her grandson and granddaughter-in-law, Michael and Jessica Reid, of Riverside and their two girls, great-granddaughters, Maggie and Evie. She is also survived by her granddaughter and grandson-in-law, Bonnie Jean and Chris Calderon, of Providence, R.I., and their baby boy, great-grandson, Hudson.
The Reid family is forever grateful to all the professionals at Nathaniel Witherell for their kindness and care for Jean.
She will be greatly missed, never forgotten and always loved.
