Arvil Carl Reeb Jr.

Arvil Carl Reeb Jr., 77, beloved husband of Linda S. Reeb, died at home on Monday, April 8th, 2019, after a year-long battle with cancer. Arvil will be always remembered as a generous and loving friend, husband, father, and grandfather. He valued family, hard work, and integrity above all else; as those who knew him well could tell you, Arvil could accomplish more in a day than most people do in a week. He never shied away from a project, and his idea of a “great” day was one where he could say “I got a lot done.” And make no mistake, Arvil definitely got a lot done.     

In his years as a clinical social worker, Arvil was a leader on the state and national level. In his early career, he fought for clinical social work to be recognized as an independently licensed profession, spending years lobbying the Kentucky legislature, and writing the bill that was finally signed into law. Arvil also served as the first president of the Kentucky Board of Clinical Social Workers, and helped craft the code of ethics and criteria for licensure for all clinical social workers in Kentucky. As a tribute to his contributions and dedication to the profession, the Kentucky Society for Clinical Social Work recently created and awarded him with the inaugural Arvil C. Reeb Jr. Lifetime Achievement award.

After graduating from the University of Louisville Kent School of Social Work, Arvil began his career as a social worker at Eastern State Hospital, later moving to the University of Kentucky where he became a tenured professor and one of the first sex therapists in the state of Kentucky.  He and his partner Helen Herring, LCSW later opened their own private practice in Doctors Park, where Arvil continued to practice until his stroke in 2018. During his career, Arvil helped countless individuals, couples and families with his distinctively blunt, insightful, and often humorous insights.

As a husband, father, and grandfather, Arvil worked tirelessly to provide for his family and for future generations. He lived below his means, planned for every contingency, and instilled in his children and grandchildren the value of hard work, generosity, and integrity. He also cultivated within his family a deep love for being on the lake and for spending time together - preferably on his beloved boat, the “Almost Divorced”. His contributions to his family are innumerable, and the loss of his leadership and unfailing love is incalculable.

Arvil is survived by the love of his life, Linda, who stood by him, loved him, and cared for him in equal measure for the past 58 years.  Their love is one for the ages that will continue to live on through the couple’s sons, David Arvil Reeb and James Edward Reeb, their wives, Amy Louise Reeb and Heidi Lynn Reeb, respectively, and through their grandchildren, Abigail Nicole Reeb Mechley, James Edward Reeb Jr. (Rebecca Lynn), David Zane Reeb, and Robert Kenneth Reeb, all of Cincinnati.

Funeral Service will be held on Saturday, April 13, 2019, 10 AM, at Central Christian Church followed by burial at the Lexington Cemetery.  Visitation will be on Friday, April 12, 2019 from 5-8 PM, Milward-Broadway.  Memorial contributions in memory of Mr. Reeb may be made to Central Christian Church, the Salvation Army, or Bluegrass Care Navigators (Hospice) Milward-Broadway is serving the family.