County mourns loss of Bill Reid

Bill Reid (Photo courtesy Mono County)

Apparent heart attack claims Mono Supervisor

Family, friends, colleagues and constituents across Mono County were staggered by the sudden death of District 4 Supervisor Bill Reid early Wednesday morning, the victim of an apparent heart attack. Details are still pending, but Reid, a long-time Mono resident, public servant, business owner and former CHP Officer, apparently died sometime around 4 a.m.
Reid moved to Bridgeport in 1973 when he was assigned as the CHP Area Commander. Active in the community, and in Mono County government, among other distinctions he served as foreman of the Mono County Grand Jury, president of the Regional Council of Rural Counties, representative for Inyo-Mono Area Agency on Aging, as well as on numerous committees.
Reid was first elected to the Mono County Board of Supervisors, representing District 4, in June 1980, sitting on the Board from 1980-1984, 1988-1992 and 1992-1996. In 2006, he filled the unexpired term of the late John Cecil. Most recently, Reid was re-elected to the Board in June 2008, and became Chairman in January 2009.
Supervisor Byng Hunt, who issued a statement on behalf of the Board, wrote, “His strong commitment to integrity, his personal values, and his dedication to his community will be sorely missed. The Board of Supervisors and County staff wish to express their sympathy to his wife, Lyn, his three children, and his grandchildren, and to all those who knew him. We will miss our friend, Bill Reid.”
Reid was noted for his impromptu bursts of impassioned comment, and had delivered a particularly good one during Tuesday’s regular meeting. He later said that his throat was bothering him, but indicated he felt better by the time he called the adjourned meeting in June Lake to order later that evening.
Supervisors reeled at the suddenness of the loss.
“It was a shock. We really had a nice day, nothing unusual. We were all relaxed and in spite of differing votes we were all friendly all day,” Supervisor Vikki Magee Bauer related.
“I was just sitting with him at the [Board’s] adjourned meeting in June Lake on Tuesday evening talking about his upcoming hunting trip. I’m just stunned,” Hunt said.
Bauer and the other Board members were, however, uniform in their admiration for him. “Bill made us all better supervisors,” Bauer said. “He and I would shake our heads sometimes in disbelief that we really were so much alike. I always took that as a compliment. I learned a lot from him and will never forget his influence on me.”
“He was just a good guy, very honest and forthright,” Hunt observed. “When I first started working with him 20 years ago, there were environmental concerns and we had different opinions on things, and if you’d told me one day I’d get to know him as I did, I’d have said you were crazy. Time changes things.” Hunt went on to say that during the past three years, “I’ve had a great respect for him. Maybe we didn’t agree on everything, but he didn’t speak until he’d done his research and he was a straight shooter.”
Hunt also recalled Reid’s ability to unify even those whose views he sometimes didn’t share. “He worked closely with Andrea Mead Lawrence and they were frequently on opposite ends of the spectrum, but they had a great relationship. He was also one of the organizers of the Collaborative Planning Team, which has turned out to be a great thing.”
“Some of his previous experiences being on the Board had been somewhat adversarial,” Supervisor Hap Hazard recalled. “When he joined this Board, Bill thought at first that this was going to be more of the same, but that didn’t happen. He really enjoyed working with this group.”
Hazard was quick to point out the sheer volume of work Reid and the Board accomplished, including a recent key reversal in the Walker River water rights grab attempted by Sen. Harry Reid (D-Nev.), and his ongoing work with the Bridgeport Indian Colony, as well as looking after north county concerns, such as Walker senior center. He was also instrumental in helping the Board and staff steer the County through what could have been troubled economic waters during the state budget crisis.
“I liked him as a person and as a leader,” Hazard reflected. “He threw himself into his public service. Bill was absolutely and totally dedicated to his community, his district and the county as a whole.”
Supervisor Tom Farnetti was traveling as this story was being assembled and not available for comment, but his office said Farnetti was profoundly saddened upon hearing of Reid’s passing.