Retired public school history/civics teacher. David was born in Wesley Hospital,the eldest son of David Foster and Dorothy Helen (Myers) Reeves. A true son of Wichita; young David, Jr. was involved in Boy Scouts while a teenager at Allison Jr. High and attained the rank of Life Scout while also earning the cherished God & Country award. David also was a skilled musician, excelling on both the piano and tenor saxophone. David played his sax each year in the North High band but especially enjoyed tickling the piano keys playing evening gigs with the Ralei Canary dance band throughout his young adult years. David graduated from North High School in 1950. With the escalation of tension on the Korean peninsula, David F. Reeves, Jr. enlisted into the U.S. Army and was assigned to Co. C, 140th Tank Battalion, 40th Infantry Division, where he served in combat as a tank commander and attained the rank of Sergeant. The prominent mustache he grew during the Korean conflict earned him the nickname of "Red" from his comrades; a nickname he treasured for years. David returned to Wichita in 1953 a changed man. The horror of war brought the permanence of eternity into sharper relief for him and, while still in Korea, David surrendered his heart and life to Christ. Soon after returning to the States, he renounced his Unitarian upbringing and became a member of West Side Baptist Church, the church of his paternal grandparents, Roy and Clara Jane (Foster) Reeves. Obedient to scripture, David was baptized as a believer in April, 1954. It was there, in the Baptist Youth Fellowship, that he met his life's love, Geraldine Lee Thomas. The two were married on June 11, 1955. Despite occasional turbulence, David and Gerri were married nearly 48 years. David proudly finished his B.A. degree in History from Friends Univ. in 1957 and earned a M.Ed. Degree from Wichita State Univ. in 1972. Frequently wearing outlandish costumes to make history come alive; Dave Reeves made U.S. History and Civics both fun and understandable for thousands of students while teaching at either Hadley Jr. High or North High School during his nearly 29-year illustrious career. David expressed his love of music as an adult through decades of singing bass in his church choir. He also served in numerous leadership positions in both his church and boy scouting, and served most recently as a member of Gideons International. David F. Reeves, Jr., was preceded in death by his parents, a sister, Claribelle Joan (1930), brother, Donald Myers (1992), and eldest son, Douglas Kent(1958).
Published in the Wichita Eagle on 12/5/2004.