Clarence Eugene "Gene" Reeves

Clarence Eugene “Gene” Reeves of St. Simons Island, Georgia, passed away on March 7, 2026. Born on November 10, 1939, to the late J. H. (Jake) and Mildred Davis Reeves, Gene graduated from Americus High School in 1957 and attended the University of Georgia. A lifelong member of Bethel Baptist Church, he lived a life marked by remarkable energy, skill, and adventure.

Gene built a shopping center in Saudi Arabia, constructed a runway for the Concorde at Houston International Airport and a highway beneath another runway, raised purebred Brahma cattle in Venezuela, and owned construction companies in Albany, Georgia, and Midland, Texas. He also farmed in Sumter and Lee counties in Georgia, at one time holding the world’s largest peanut allotment and earning a feature in Furrow Magazine. His many talents and bold undertakings took him around the globe, yet he remained deeply rooted in the people and places he loved.

He is survived by his cherished daughters, Tina Calhoun of Vina, Alabama, Millie Reeves of Brunswick, Georgia, and Mildred and Rebecca Reeves of St. Simons Island, Georgia. Gene shared a close and loving bond with his four siblings, all of whom survive: sisters Sue (Wayne) Rose of Seymour, Tennessee, and Jo Evelyn (David) Bone of Ellaville, Georgia; and brothers Jerry (Susan) Reeves of Abbeville, Alabama, and Gary (Beth) Reeves of Americus, Georgia. He is also survived by four grandchildren, Kayla Hasty, Brianna Creel, Adam Sandlin, and Jake Palmer; three nieces and five nephews; many cousins and friends; and his childhood friend since second grade, Gary Popwell of Kingsport, Tennessee, with whom he shared a lifetime of laughter.

In addition to his parents, Gene was predeceased by his beloved wife Nieves, his great-niece Haley Bone, and his sister-in-law Diane Reeves.