Harriet Reid

Harriet Rose Reid of Montclair, New Jersey, died peacefully on September 6, 2025, in the arms of her parents, a day after her fourth birthday. She was the beloved daughter of Claire Cushman and Stuart Reid and the proud big sister to brothers Rufus and Russell.

Born on September 5, 2021, Harriet was diagnosed early on with a rare neurodevelopmental disorder. At first, this seemed to define her, but she was the one who got her parents through the difficult time after the initial diagnosis, showing them that even though she wasn't the child they expected, she was in fact more lovable than they could have imagined. Harriet was a child you could never get mad at or be disappointed by. Soon, her parents liked to say that her disorder was "the least interesting thing about her."

Affectionately called "Mrs. Joy," Harriet almost always wore a wide smile on her face; just seeing it would brighten your whole day. Her happiness was infectious. Her calm nature lifted the mood of everyone around her. When describing her, one adjective always came to mind first: sweet.

Harriet had many passions. She loved clapping, giving high-fives, playing peekaboo, soaring on swings, and stomping her feet. An enthusiastic kicker, she loved swimming and enjoyed water in general. Through her communication tablet, she'd ask for one thing over and over again: bubbles. She loved music-dancing to songs, strumming a guitar, banging a xylophone, or smiling to "The Itsy Bitsy Spider." She loved mealtimes, and was practiced at the art of grabbing the arm of the person feeding her to ensure that the food didn't go away.

She loved being read to, particularly if the book had interesting textures to scratch, and would always lean in to get a good look at the pages and help turn them. She loved petting dogs, specifically their ears. She loved being rolled through Montclair in her stroller, especially when she could grab the leaves of bushes she passed. She loved taking walks in Anderson Park, where she chose her own circuitous path through the grass. She loved snuggling with her mummy and daddy, who loved nothing more in life than the same.

Harriet, it must be said, was beautiful. She had big, sparkly, hazel eyes, exceptionally long and dark eyelashes that rarely escaped comment, adorable dimples, and cherubic curly hair. She exhibited so many cute looks, from subtly raising her eyebrows to playfully puckering her rosebud lips. She looked effortlessly fashionable in the bright, colorful clothing she always wore, her outfits topped off with her signature pink helmet. She was funny, too, possessing many hilarious habits, such as tilting her head to see the world upside-down, backing into nearly any object and treating it as a chair, and repeating "duga-duga-duga" at top volume.

A born extrovert, Harriet was naturally drawn to others. She knew more than she could tell us, and was infinitely curious about the world around her. She was deeply interested in, and endlessly amused by, her brothers. Rufus, age two and a half, loved goofing around in the playpen and splashing in the bathtub with "Hayat," even going so far as to overcome his natural possessiveness to share a toy or two with her (usually temporarily). Russell, five months old, loved laughing and smiling at her. Though their memories of her will fade, they will grow up hearing all about their magical big sister who loved them so much.

Harriet had her challenges. She could not speak, struggled with movement and cognition, and suffered from seizures. But rarely did she complain. To the contrary, she was determined to master new skills-for example, grittily practicing to crawl until she succeeded in doing so at 17 months. The day she took her first steps, at age two and a half, was one of her parents' proudest moments. Harriet made it easy for everyone around her to focus on her abilities, not her disabilities. The name "Harriet" means "ruler of the home," and that certainly described her role in her family. She was its center. Everything revolved around her.

In her short life, Harriet taught us all so much: how to deal with a difficult diagnosis, how to find value in every human life, how to include people with disabilities, how to fight for those who can't fight for themselves, how to focus on the beauty of the present and not worry about the future, how to have more patience than you ever thought possible. Her legacy will live on every time someone who knew her greets rather than ignores the child in a wheelchair, invites the neurodivergent classmate to their child's birthday party, or smiles at the grocery bagger with an intellectual disability. Now, she will teach us how to grieve.

One of the blessings of Harriet's life was that it opened up to her parents a whole new world of people who have dedicated their lives to helping children with special needs. Her family thanks the brilliant and empathetic staff at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia who were with her from beginning to end, the energetic therapists from the New Jersey Early Intervention System who were devoted to helping Harriet during the first three years of her life, and the profoundly kind staff at CTC Academy in Fair Lawn, New Jersey, who believed in her potential and celebrated her accomplishments during her one year in school.

The family also thanks Lourdes Maneira, who cared for Harriet from the time Harriet was just a month old. Lourdes always knew what Harriet wanted and how to make her happy-for example, carefully putting on her adaptive shoes and braces every morning before school, blending a special soup for her to eat, and sewing custom sleep sacks to keep her safe at night.

Harriet was lucky to be surrounded by such a loving and accepting extended family, who all pitched in in various ways to support her. She is survived by her grandparents, Heather Lawson and John Cushman of Toronto, Ontario, and Carol and Andrew Reid of Haverford, Pennsylvania; her aunts and uncles, Alex Cushman and Madeline Garnett of New York City, James Reid of Brooklyn, and Julia Reid and Eric Eaton of Gladwyne, Pennsylvania; and her cousins, Felicity, Amelia, Catherine, Thomas, William, Arthur, and James.

Harriet was also surrounded by countless friends and admirers, kids and grown-ups alike, at her school, in Montclair, and beyond.

All will miss her dearly. All will hold her with them forever.

A memorial service and reception will be held on Saturday, October 18, in Montclair; please contact the family directly for details. If you wish to make a donation in her memory, please consider giving to CTC Academy in Fair Lawn, New Jersey.