Deacon Lee Ernest Mitchell Jr., age 84, peacefully departed this life for his heavenly home on July 9, 2018.
Lee, along with his wife Mae, worked for the Washoe County School District. Lee was the Head Grounds Keeper at Edward Reed High School when it opened in the mid-1970s and served in that position until the late 1990s. While at Reed, Lee was instrumental in designing the sports fields, specifically the football field. As a tribute, the field at Reed is named “Lee Mitchell Field”, in his honor. The large scoreboard sign displaying his name can easily be seen as you drive past Reed High School on Baring Blvd in Sparks, Nevada.
In addition to working for the school district, Lee and Mae became foster parents with Washoe County Human Service Agency, formally Washoe County Department of Social Services. Lee and Mae were foster parents from the mid 1970s until approximately 2010. During this time, they proudly shared that they had fostered over 300 children. In the mid 2000s, Mike Capello, Director of WCDSS, honored them with the “Mitchell Award”, to recognize individuals who had been foster parents for over 20 years. Today many of the children they fostered are still in contact with them and refer to them as Mom and Dad or Grandma and Papa. Their work with foster children has inspired their daughter, Cynthia Willis, to commit to a career at WCHSA for many years.
Deacon Lee Mitchell was a devoted member of the Greater New Hope Missionary Baptist Church. He served as a Deacon, Trustee and participated in numerous projects and activities and was a member of the GNHMBC choir.
Deacon Lee was preceded in death by his parents, Deacon and Sister Lee E. Mitchell Sr., three sisters, Clarzell Mitchell, Carrie Mitchell Gates, Geraldine Mitchell Fort and son Raymond “Ray” Eric Mitchell.
Deacon Lee Mitchell leaves to cherish his memory, his loving wife Mae Lloyd Mitchell, daughter, Cynthia Renita Mitchell Willis, grand-daughter Celeste Willis (all of Reno-Sparks), and his sister Juanita Mitchell Luster (San Jose, California). He also leaves a host of nieces nephews, extended family members and numerous community and Christian friends.
The memorial service for Deacon Mitchell will be held on Monday, July 23 at GNHMBC, 1810 Helena Ave. Reno, NV. Viewing is at 11:30 and service begins at 12:00 noon.
The service for Deacon Lee will also be streamed live on the Greater New Hope Facebook page at noon. https://m.facebook.com/GreaterNewHope
Should you wish to give a donation in honor of Deacon Lee Mitchell, the family requests that donations be given to any fund supporting foster care or GNHMBC for church renovations. The family invites you to leave a condolence message on the book of memories at: www.waltonsfuneralhomes.com.