Alice Elizabeth Reed

Alice Elizabeth (Bracher) (Smith) Reed, 91, passed away peacefully at home on September 20, 2025, in Corrales, New Mexico.

Alice was born Alice Bracher and was preceded in death by her parents, Edwin and Marjory (Scholl) Bracher; her brother, Peter Bracher; and her husband of 36 years, Ronald Smith.

She later married Conaly Reed and is survived by her husband of 27 years; her children and their partners, Eric and Holly Smith, Alan Smith and Gerry Betz, and Jan and Chris Turri; and her stepchildren, Staci Reed Kosick and Charlie Reed and his wife, Lindsay Ross. Alice’s blended family includes seven grandchildren and fourteen great-grandchildren.

Born in La Grande, Oregon, Alice spent her early childhood in Victoria, British Columbia. At age six, her family moved to Seattle, Washington, where she grew up, graduated from Lincoln High School, and briefly attended Wittenberg University in Ohio. She later returned to Seattle and continued her education at the University of Washington. In 1953, she married Ron Smith and began raising their family.

In 1968, Ron’s job relocated the family to Alamogordo, New Mexico. Alice completed her education at New Mexico State University, earning a bachelor’s degree in education, and taught fourth grade at Heights Elementary School from 1970 to 1976. Over the years, Alice and Ron lived in Ruidoso and Albuquerque, New Mexico, where she worked for Presbyterian Healthcare as an Executive Administrative Assistant until her retirement in 2000.

Widowed in 1989, Alice eventually met Conaly Reed. They were married on a beach in Hawaii in 1998 and, upon retirement, settled in Capitan, New Mexico, where they lived until 2015. Alice spent her final ten years in Rio Rancho and later in Corrales, New Mexico, living with her daughter Jan and son-in-law Chris until her passing.

Alice was known and deeply loved for her spectacular smile, kindness, joyful spirit, and playful nature. She was a great listener, an engaging conversationalist, and an exceptional teacher both in and out of the classroom. Music was a constant thread throughout Alice’s life—she played the piano from childhood and continued singing in her church choirs well into her eighties. She generously volunteered her time to her children’s activities, the communities where she lived, and her church.

A daily walker, Alice also loved hiking, camping, and exploring. In retirement, she and Conaly traveled throughout much of the United States and parts of Canada in their motor home, visiting family and friends along the way. With music and art as constant influences in her life, Alice developed a passion for painting and was quite prolific until later years, when vascular dementia gently diminished her memory and processing abilities. Through it all, Alice’s kind nature and radiant smile endured. She was a joy to all who knew her.

While she will be greatly missed, we know she is soaring in the heavens, singing and dancing on her beloved clouds, smiling and laughing with us forever.

A private celebration honoring Alice’s life will be held in January. Those wishing to honor Alice please consider a donation to the Alzheimer’s Association.

Alice’s family is forever grateful to her incredible team of caregivers and Roadrunner Hospice.