Schavaria Reeves, age 56 of Clifton, went to be with his Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, on Saturday, September 24, 2022. He had fought a valiant battle with prostate cancer for the last eight years.
 
Schavaria grew up in Harlem, New York, and his mother raised him to know Jesus. From his youngest days, Schavaria chose to spend his free time at the local church, avoiding the worldly temptations that were so readily available on the neighborhood streets. He trusted that God had a better life in store for him. He showed promise as an artist and this gained him acceptance into the Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts in Manhattan. After graduating high school, he went on to study art at the Fashion Institute of Technology, FIT, in New York. While a student at FIT, a friend asked him to create a story board for an upcoming music video and Schavaria’s artwork was so impressive that the production company hired him full time. His career began quickly and he found himself working as a production assistant in the art department making music videos for some of the most popular artists of the era. He eventually settled in as a sound engineer with IATSE Local 52 in Queens, NY, and had most recently been working on projects with Amazon Prime. He was passionate and professional about his work, was respected and beloved in the industry, and he enjoyed meeting all the celebrities along the way. Among the highlights of his career was when he was able to watch Michael Jackson rehearsing for a show in New York City.
 
On one particularly special day during his career, a friend of his came to visit him at work and she brought along a friend named Martha Melendez. When Schavaria first saw Martha, he was astounded. He pulled his friend aside and asked, “who is this woman? I have to marry her.” Martha, however, wasn’t as equally smitten with Schavaria at first sight. In time though, she warmed up to him and learned that he was a man of strong character, who was very loving, and he proved to be utterly devoted to her. They have shared twenty-seven years since first meeting, and their love grew stronger every day. The strength of their marriage is rooted in their shared faith in Jesus Christ, and they’ve shared that faith with their children, their friends, and just about everyone else they encounter. Martha is grateful for the time she was able to share with Schavaria, and for the faith that they both shared so deeply throughout their years together.
 
If you were blessed to know Schavaria, then you know he was always happy and joyful. He would talk to just about everyone he met, and he often made lifelong friendships after striking up a conversation with a stranger. He enjoyed life with a zeal and happiness that was fueled by his faith that something even greater awaited him in his next life. That faith began during his earliest days growing up in Harlem. He went to church frequently in his Harlem neighborhood, in an effort to stay off the streets. He spent hours at his church. He also watched televangelists such as Billy Graham and Jimmy Swaggart on TV, and his faith grew strong as he learned about the love of Jesus. He received the Lord at the age of fourteen and has walked with the Lord, as best as he could, ever since that day. He was not a perfect man by any means, but he always did the best he could, and he was never shy about sharing his faith. In the days prior to his death, as his family sat vigil, he never showed fear and held fast in the knowledge that he would see the face of Jesus soon. What a glorious moment that must have been for him.
 
Schavaria is survived by his beloved wife, Martha Melendez of Clifton, their two children: Sky and her husband Alex, and Kayloni Burton, his brother, Ernest Reeves, and many nieces and nephews. He was predeceased by his mother, Ollie Reeves, in 2021.
 
Friends may visit with the family at the Vander May Wayne Colonial Funeral Home, 567 Ratzer Road, Wayne, on Friday, September 30, 2022 from 4-8 PM. A brief graveside service will be held at 9:30 AM on Saturday, Oct. 1, 2022 at the Mt. Rest Cemetery, Butler, NJ followed by a funeral service at 11 AM Saturday, Oct. 1, 2022 at The Chapel, 264 Jacksonville Road, Lincoln Park, NJ.