Sheila Kay Reed, beloved wife, mother, grandmother, sister, aunt, and friend passed away peacefully on September 16, 2025 at the Johnson County Hospital in Tecumseh, NE. She was born to Donald E. and Norma “Bridge” (Higgins) Garris on November 5, 1955 at her grandmother’s home in Tecumseh, Nebraska.

Sheila attended Tecumseh Public Schools throughout her childhood and graduated from Tecumseh High School in 1974. While working alongside her mother at the Ace Café, she met and later married the love of her life, James Reed. They were married March 11, 1977 at St. Paul’s United Church of Christ (Maple Grove) in rural Johnson County. They made their home in Tecumseh, NE and raised two children together.

Sheila was a life-long, dedicated caregiver and an extraordinarily hard worker. She helped her mother babysit many children in the community and continued this while her own children were young. She raised dachshunds and basset hounds with her family for many years as well as caring for rabbits, pot-bellied pigs, chickens, and ponies throughout the years. She later developed a fondness for pugs and has never been without having at least one dog as a family member in her home. She began working in food service at Tecumseh Public Schools when her children were in school. She also worked for the Krause Meat Locker and in the meat department at Nider’s Grocery in Tecumseh before working in housekeeping at the Johnson County Hospital for eight years until she retired in 2009.

Sheila and Jim enjoyed going to events in town and to the surrounding local communities to listen to live bands play music and they were quite the dancers – once she pulled out her black jeans and boots. She had a love of worn-in blue jeans, denim shirts, and Pepsi. Sheila was an amazing cook for her family and friends, and she was proud to have taught her son-in-law how to make the best gravy for her daughter among many things. She liked spending time outside gardening and caring for the flowerbeds her son created around her home. Sheila and Jim also enjoyed going to area auctions and garage sales to find bargains and Trail of Treasures Returns Weekends in Oct Trail of Treasures, a threeday shopping extravaganza, is back starting Oct. 4-6 along Nebraska’s Heritage Highway 136 and Highways 6 and 34 west of Edison to the Colorado line.

Now in its 14th year, the event continues to grow, drawing visitors from Nebraska and beyond, including Missouri, Iowa, Kansas, Colorado, Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Illinois. Shoppers will find garage sales, estate sales, antiques, repurposed goods, collectibles, vintage décor and “exclusive junk” at hundreds of sites along the route.

Shopper Guides with community maps and a list of registered vendors are available in Auburn, Beatrice, Fairbury, Haigler, Harbine, Republican City and Tecumseh, or can be downloaded at heritagehighway136.com.

Organizers ask shoppers to support only registered vendors displaying the official Carolina Blue and White signs, as they help make the event possible.

For more information, call 402-335-0745. Trail of Treasures Returns Weekends in Oct Trail of Treasures, a threeday shopping extravaganza, is back starting Oct. 4-6 along Nebraska’s Heritage Highway 136 and Highways 6 and 34 west of Edison to the Colorado line.