Roger Earl Reeder, Army Officer, Teacher

Roger Earl Reeder, 92, an Army lieutenant colonel who retired in 1965 and spent the next 12 years as an English teacher and debate coach at Edison High School in Alexandria, died Jan. 14 at Capital Hospice in Arlington. He had cancer.

At Edison, Col. Reeder led his debate teams to Virginia state championship wins. The school later started a debate tournament in his honor.

He was a former chairman of the National Forensics League in Virginia.

Col. Reeder, an Arlington resident, was born in Tollesboro, Ky. He was a graduate of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where he also received a master's degree in English. He received a master's degree in psychology from Florida State University.

He served in the Army from 1941 to 1965. During World War II, he was in the second wave to land at Normandy on D-Day and also was in the Battle of the Bulge.

He served in Korea during the war there. His final active-duty assignment was assistant post commander at Fort Myer.

His decorations included the Bronze Star.

His avocations included walking at high school tracks.

His wife, Rosemary Candy Reeder, whom he married in 1938, died in 1996.

Survivors include six children, Mary R. White of Ocean City, M. Candice Fonke of Corpus Christi, Tex., Julia A. Thompson and John G. Reeder, both of Arlington, and Kathleen I. Shaw and Jeannette A. Zinser, both of Friendswood, Tex.; a brother; a sister; 10 grandchildren; and six great-grandchildren.
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