New facility helps students explore military options at East Liberty's Phase 4 Learning Center
Driving to a meeting with members of the military in Downtown Pittsburgh, Tom Reed was forced off to the side of the road by a truck.
Paramedics arrived. They suggested taking him to the hospital.
“Tom told them the only place he was going was to that meeting,” his wife, Terrie Suica-Reed, said. “So the ambulance drove him there.”
Reed was adamant about keeping his schedule that day in 2005. He had an important message. He wanted to talk to those in attendance about Phase 4 Learning Center, Inc., a private secondary school that helps at-risk and disadvantaged people earn their high school diplomas and succeed after graduation.
He and his wife founded Phase 4 in 2003.
“My husband had a passion for youth and a passion for the military,” Suica-Reed said. “He always wanted to create a facility that helps students explore military careers.”
That vision became reality on Monday.
The Tom Reed Armed Forces Career Center inside the Phase 4 headquarters in East Liberty was dedicated. May is Military Appreciation Month, honoring the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, Coast Guard, Army National Guard and Space Force.
“Tom appreciated the freedoms we have because of the military,” Suica-Reed said, through tears. “This career center will help keep his legacy alive. He was the strongest, kindest, most confident man I know.”
Since the inception of Phase 4 nearly 20 years ago, more than 1,000 of its students have enlisted in the military. Approximately 7% of Phase 4 graduates enter the military every year. The other options are higher education and the workforce.
Phase 4’s graduation rate has averaged 98 percent, according to the organization.
One of those grads is Sgt. Johnny Higgins Jr., a U.S. Army Reserves combat engineer from Ross. The 35-year-old grew up in McKeesport. He was at risk of dropping out of high school when he enrolled in Phase 4 at the request of his mother, Rhonda Higgins.
“At Phase 4, I found a home,” he said.
Higgins enlisted in the Army Reserves in May 2008 after graduating from Phase 4. He completed basic training at Fort Leonard Wood, Mo., and served at Army bases around the country, including in Texas, California, New York and Virginia. In 2020, Higgins completed a six-month tour of duty in Kuwait.
He and his wife, Ashley, have four children.
“I was an early prototype for this Armed Forces Career Center,” said Higgins, who plans to stay in the military until he retires. “I needed the one-on-one teaching. I would not be the man I am today without Phase 4.”
Higgins said it’s important to give back.
He recalled not always surrounding himself with the right people. His mother didn’t give up on him. She took him to the military recruiting office in the former Century III Mall. As a junior, he learned he needed to graduate before entering the military.
He earned his diploma.
The center will prepare the next generation of leaders such as Higgins, said U.S. Army Capt. Chris Carpenter, Pittsburgh Company commander.
“They will have access to explore all areas of military service and an opportunity to be all they can be,” Carpenter said. He shared a quote from the late Nelson Mandela, former president of South Africa:
“Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.”
Naval Commander Kristin M. Shepherd, executive officer of Navy Talent Acquisition Group Pittsburgh, said the relationships built through this center will be far-reaching.
Tom Reed wanted to do something to change the world, said U.S. Army Ret. Col. Robert P. Wade, registrar of the Army War College, who met Tom and Terrie Suica-Reed in 2005. They established a partnership between the U.S. Army, Department of Defense and all branches of the U.S. military.
“Phase 4 has been instrumental in providing children with a promising future,” Wade said. “Tom is in that picture on the wall feeling proud of us.”
Reed died last year.
U.S. Rep. Mike Doyle’s office presented an American flag that was flown over the Capitol during the State of the Union Address in Tom Reed’s honor.
Reed had a deep respect for those who defend their country, Suica-Reed said.
“He believed those who serve in our military — making tremendous sacrifices — deserve our respect and support; he would be so honored by the naming of this Armed Forces Career Center,” she said.
Suica-Reed said there is a plan to open a similar center in Harrisburg.
JoAnne Klimovich Harrop is a TribLive reporter covering the region's diverse culinary scene and unique homes. She writes features about interesting people. The Edward R. Murrow award-winning journalist began her career as a sports reporter. She has been with the Trib for 26 years and is the author of "A Daughter's Promise." She can be reached at jharrop@triblive.com.
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