A. Reed Franklin

Services for Reed Franklin,77, of Flint, will be held Monday, April 13, 2015 at 2:00 PM at the Latter-day Saints Bullard Chapel, 2300 CR 145, with Bishop Sam Anderson officiating. Family visitation will be held at Stewart Family Funeral Home in Tyler on Sunday, April 12, 2015 from 5:00 to 7:00 PM and again at 1:00 PM at the church prior to the funeral. Burial will follow at Ebenezer Cemetery in Arp. Reed was born August 31, 1937 to Virginia Belle Reed and JT Franklin in Overton. He attended Gaston schools and in his later years was instrumental in building and expanding the Gaston Museum. Reed married Ramona Taylor in 1957 and they both attended Lamar Tech in Beaumont where he received a BS in chemistry and biology, minoring in math and secondary education. After graduation they moved to Richardson where he taught at Richardson High School. After two and a half years, his father asked if he would come to Tyler to help with his company Broadway Rental and Sales. Upon getting to Tyler, Reed taught at Hubbard Jr. High for a year and then moved to Robert E. Lee where he taught chemistry and geometry for 5 years, earning Teacher of the Year one year. By this time, Reed’s family had grown and he decided he couldn’t raise a family of nine on a teacher’s salary. So he went full-time in the rental business, which grew. They soon built a new building on Shelley Drive and A-1 Rent All was born. Reed retired and sold the business in 1997. He was active in Rotary and the Texas Rental Association throughout his career. He served as bishop in the LDS ward for 5 years and served in the Dallas temple for the last 2 years. Reed was a people person and often said he couldn’t think of anyone he didn’t like. Fishing was his great love, and he pulled enough crappie out of Lake Palestine to feed thousands of people at his famous fish fries. His deep freeze was always full of frozen filets. He is loved by many. He will be missed by all. Reed is preceded in death by his parents and brother Jack. He is survived by wife Patricia Tipp Franklin; daughters Deborah (Pat) Cartwright, Sherri Creighton, Cindi (Steven) Cundiff, Michele Franklin, Leesa (Kevin) Huckabee, Denise (Kenny) Bardsley and Chalease (Matt) Denson; grandchildren Lauren, Jessica and Madelyn Cartwright, Collin, Nathan and Matthew Creighton, Michael Reed Frazier, Alexis (Jason) Hewes, Sierra Cundiff, Ashley Ross, Caitlin Robinson, Cameron, Hannah and Sarah Huckabee, Cole, Mason and Tyler Bardsley, and Taylor and Madison Denson; and six great-grandchildren. Also surviving are step-children Lorri (Mike) Watson, James (Audrey) Pinson, Billy (Sonja) Pinson and brother, Joel Franklin and wife Lucy and sister, Francine Mellon. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Gaston Museum, P O Box 301, Joinerville, Texas 75658 or the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints missionary fund.

A. Reed Franklin

August 31, 1937 - April 9, 2015