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The bells of the ‘Marble Monastery’ are silent as we pay last homage to one of her favorite sons, the ‘Mad Monk.’ <em>William Reed Canning</em> was born September 10, 1943 in Wayne, NE. At that time, his father was in Europe flying fighter planes in World War II, so Reed was two before he met his dad.</p>
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Reed spent much of his elementary and high school years in Europe where his father was stationed, graduating from Kaiserslaughtern High School in Germany. Reed loved being part of an Air Force family, and so it was no surprise when he sought to continue his education at a service academy. His family was very proud of his admission to and graduation from West Point.</p>
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Reed began his West Point experience in a most inauspicious manner. Due to a flight delay coming from Europe, his arrival at Central Area was one day late. Needless to say, when he reported wearing pointy shoes and pegged pants, he drew the kind of unwanted attention that we were all striving to avoid. I’m sure the fact that he missed reporting to the “Man in the Red Sash” scarred him for life, or maybe it was being sworn into the Corps in a janitor’s closet rather than at Trophy Point that did it.</p>
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Reed became known to many throughout the Corps via KDET where he was known as the ‘Mad Monk of the Marble Monastery.’ As he spun the discs, he was always ready with a story. I’m sure he helped many cadets through the dreary days of Gloom Period. One of his roommates recounted how Reed seldom cracked a book, yet passed everything. I guess he hid from many of us just how smart he was, or maybe it was that he was pursuing other goals. Although he graduated just a few slots away from the middle, what one might call average, Reed was far from average.</p>
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Reed’s Army career was cut short by a bipolar disorder diagnosis, and I believe the Army was the big loser. Reed, however, made lemonade from lemons and always had a glass (or should I say mug) that was half full rather than half empty. He continued to impact those around him with his indomitable spirit and wit. Every time we spoke he always had a story or a joke to tell. To have a finer appreciation of his wit, let me cite a few examples.</p>
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Once, while working for the state of Texas, he sought to disprove the adage that the clothes make the man. He came to work one day in his VW Bus with 20 sets of clothes in it. And every 15 minutes or so, he would change into a different outfit. He made a point of asking his boss questions throughout the day. Finally, at the end of the day, he asked his boss if he had noticed anything different about him. When his boss said “no,” Reed told him that he had worn 20 different outfits during the day and that if he didn’t notice what he was wearing, why did he care what Reed wore to work?</p>
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And then there was the time he took his 12-year-old nephew to Disney World. They were in a long line for the Haunted Mansion when a voice came over the speakers and said that if anyone had any special needs or needed assistance to let attendants know. Reed raised his hand and said, loudly, that he was manic depressive and that if he had to stand in line too long it tended to set him off, and the crowd parted and made way for Reed and his nephew to move to the front of the line.</p>
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He would also list his name as Reed Canning, M.D. When questioned about what kind of doctor he was, Reed would say no, he wasn’t a doctor, he was “m”anic “d”epressive.</p>
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Reed retired in 2002 and moved to St. George, UT where he pursued his passionate love of photography. Reed was uncanny in his ability to capture the picture within the picture. He was happiest when exploring and photographing the state and national parks throughout the Southwest. He especially loved catching the perfect moment of a sunset on film.</p>
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Reed would sign his name by leaving out the vertical lines, so you had to visualize them. In his own small way, he wanted you to look at the world differently. He succeeded.</p>
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Reed also loved cars, notably foreign makes due to all of the time he spent growing up in Europe. When he graduated he bought a Sunbeam Alpine sports car, undoubtedly, the only one in the class. It fit because there was but one ‘Mad Monk.’</p>
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I had the opportunity during plebe year to hear Captain Dinwiddie do one of his plebe year serials on the “Adventures of Captain Cosine and his side-kick Secant.” Rooming with and knowing Reed was like that, one continuous non-stop zany adventure.</p>
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Reed left us peacefully at Hospice House in Tallahassee on Friday, March 7 amongst family and friends as was his wish. Reed was preceded in death by his father Bev and is survived by his mother Millie Canning, a long-time resident of Pensacola Beach and recently of Tallahassee, his brother Mark and his wife Sue of Tallahassee, and his nephew Matt of Atlanta. Reed’s wit and gentle spirit will be greatly missed.</p>
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“For whom the bell tolls. It tolls for thee Mad Monk, it tolls for thee.”</p>
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Farewell and Godspeed.</p>