Dedication service held for Sheriff Landric Reid Memorial Bridge

ANSON — On a day tinged with sadness, but softened by the passage of time, Anson County gathered to celebrate and remember the life of a man whose shadow still looms large over the county he protected, Sheriff Landric Reid.

A man beloved countywide for who he was and the job he performed, Reid will be forever remembered when residents travel the Sheriff Landric Reid Memorial Bridges on US Highway 74 where the road crosses Lane Creek near the Peachland township.

The bridge dedication is the result of a resolution passed by the NC Board of Transportation in January to name the bridges after Reid.

Sharing moments of tears and laughter, many spoke on behalf of their late friend and colleague at the bridge dedication service held on Thursday, May 16 at South Piedmont Community College’s Polkton Campus.

A testament to who we are as people is the lives we touch while we are here, and at Reid’s bridge dedication service, an empty seat could not be found.

Law enforcement officials of various ranks and departments, along with Sheriffs from the coast of North Carolina to the mountains were in attendance to memorialize their fallen friend. Anson County Commissioners, county leaders, NCDOT officials, residents and family were all in attendance for the occasion.

Speaking at the dedication, Reid’s sister, Daphne Grier recalled, “I can truly say that my brother loved serving the citizens of Anson County. He made sure everyone was taken care of, from the children to the elderly.”

Current sheriff, Scott Howell, shared that Reid loved, and had the love of one woman, Cassandra, whom he was married to for twenty-seven years. He spoke of how he and Reid bonded over their shared love of the Duke Blue Devils and their faith in the Lord.

Howell stated, “I put my life in his hands every day that I would make it home.”

Citing his reason for being able to place confidence of that magnitude in another human being, Sheriff Howell explained, “He served with the honesty, integrity, passion, loyalty and commitment inside a man that you should expect in your sheriff. A man either has it or he doesn’t.”

A North Carolina native, Reid was born, raised, and educated in Cabarrus County. After serving in the United States Army until he was honorably discharged in 1988, Reid went on to serve with the NC Highway Patrol for twenty-three years. He was elected Sheriff of Anson County by popular vote in 2014, serving until his untimely passing on September 21, 2022.

Executive Vice President of the NC Sheriff’s Association Edmond W. Caldwell, Jr. remembers Reid as a strong, silent leader.

“The folks in the organization that get the work done are the quiet leaders that are working behind the scenes. That is who Sheriff Landric Reid was in the North Carolina Sheriff’s Association.”

Using Reid’s words, Sheriff Howell has previously described who Sheriff Reid was to Anson County, recalling, “Sheriff Reid was once asked if he was proud to be the first black Sheriff elected of Anson. He replied, ‘I am proud to be the Sheriff of Anson County. I want to be known as the best Sheriff I can be.”

Sheriff Howell believes Reid got his wish, summarizing, “The man that Landric was made him sheriff.”