Rena Mae Reddick

Rena W. Reddick, 86, of Valdosta died Sunday November 4 2018 in Cincinnati Ohio. She was born on February 28, 1932 in Chandler County Georgia to the late William Hardy and Eva Cannon Woods and had lived in Valdosta since 1955. She was the beloved wife of the late Rev. Douglas M. Reddick.
Rena grew up in Bulloch County Georgia. She graduated from Marvin Pittman High School in Statesboro, and then attended Georgia Southern University, previously Georgia Southern College. She received a degree in Childhood Education, and taught elementary school on St. Simons Island.
She and Douglas were married June 10 1952 at Jackson Church in Screven County, where he was pastor. They celebrated the birth of their first child, Paul Douglas Reddick, and shortly thereafter moved to Valdosta when Douglas became pastor of Northside Baptist Church, where he served 38 years. Their second child, Elisabeth (Reddick) Fitzgerald was born in Valdosta. Rena handled numerous duties as a pastor’s spouse, in addition to being a wife and mother.
Both in and outside the church her special love was music. She played the piano beautifully, and her strong alto voice was in the choir every service.
In 1965 Rena returned to teaching elementary school. She taught 2nd and 3rd grade at S.L. Mason Elementary School in Valdosta and then at Hahira Elementary School. Hundreds of people in Lowndes County and elsewhere remember her as their teacher. During this period she also studied for and was awarded her Master’s Degree in Education from Valdosta State University, then College.
Rena loved travel. She and Douglas made numerous trips to the Holy Land, and served as Tour Leaders on several occasions. They made many trips to other destinations abroad as well. After their retirement in 1992, they also travelled widely in the US, usually in their camper.
Survivors include her son and daughter-in-law, Paul Douglas Reddick and Sherri L Reddick of Savannah, GA, her daughter and son-in-law Elisabeth and Kevin Fitzgerald of Fairfield Ohio; four grandchildren, Erin Michelle Reddick Kirby and her husband Robert Kirby of New York, NY, Ian Paul Reddick of Boston, MA, Benjamin Kevin Fitzgerald of Fairfield OH, Andrew Scott Fitzgerald of Cincinnati OH; three great grandchildren, James (Jamie) Paul Kirby of New York, Brennan Isaiah Baynes, and Brooklynn Grace Fitzgerald, both of Fairfield OH; her sister-in-law and brother-in-law Barbara and Glenn Stevenson of Charlotte, NC; sister in law, Shirley Woods of Savannah, GA; numerous nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by two sisters, Sarah Beth (Woods) Anderson and Betty Joyce (Woods) Howell and two brothers, Talmadge Franklin Woods and Randall Douglas Woods.
Visitation for Rena will be held on Friday, November 9, 2018 from 10.30 a.m. to 12.00 p. m. at Northside Baptist Church. Funeral services will be held on Friday, November 9, 2018 at 1.30 pm at Northside Baptist Church with Dr. Robby Foster officiating. Burial will follow at Sunset Hill Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorials be made to the Building Our Legacy Fund at Northside Baptist Church, or the Mayo Clinic. Condolences to the family may be conveyed online at www.mclanecares.com Carson McLane Funeral Home.