SAN ANTONIO — Edgewood ISD officer Rogena Reed passed away Tuesday July 30, after battling lung cancer for less than a year. The school resource officer had been with the district for 30 years.
- Edgewood ISD officer passed away
- Rogena Reed worked for the district for 30 years
- Touched the lives of thousands
On Friday, former students, colleagues and family of Reed gathered at the districts main office for a vigil.
"It’s very hard to believe and it’s hard to accept," said Rose Orozco, an EISD detective. "It was just too sudden."
Officer Reed touched the lives of thousands of students including Edgewood ISD's Police Chief Jesse Quiroga.
"Children from 20 years ago, that she encountered maybe one time are remembering how she touched them and put them on the right path, I am an example of that," said Quiroga. "She remembered exactly what she did for me. She remembered exactly what my situation was. That told me this is a real person, this is the real deal."
Officer Reed's final work assignment before passing away was to deliver groceries to a family in need.
"She left us with a beautiful assignment, to continue her work and continue to do what she did," said Quiroga. "Would we ever be like her, no. Will we ever have somebody like her, no. But she’s always going to be with us."
Reed graduated from Edgewood High School in 1979. She then went on to become a professional basketball player in the European league where she played for Spain. The community is now hoping to rename the first African-American school in Edgewood ISD in her honor.
Reed will be laid to rest on Friday. A public viewing will be held on Tuesday at Bell & Bell Funeral Home from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.