Delhi - DELHI - Reeva Elizabeth Clark, of Elk Creek Road, Delhi, passed away peacefully Nov. 14, just five days before her 101st birthday.

Born in Brooklyn, Reeva was the daughter of Ruth John and Harry Van Scoy Lawrence. She was raised in Richmond Hill, Queens.

Graduating with honors from John Adams High School, Reeva was known as the "nicest and quietest" of her classmates. After graduating from Scudder Secretarial School, she worked for the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company in New York City.

Reeva met her first husband, John "Jack" Curley, in 1939, at the local church league basketball games. They were married in October, 1942. Two weeks after their wedding, Jack received his draft notice and he served in the army until November 1945. Their first daughter, Reeva, arrived while Jack was stationed overseas.

Upon Jack's return, he joined the New York City Police Department, becoming a mounted policeman. The young couple welcomed two more children, Glenn and Jane, and built a home in Bayside, Queens.

In 1953, Reeva and Jack realized a long cherished dream. They bought a dairy farm in Delhi, and moved to the country. David and Lynne joined the family soon after.

Unfortunately, their time on the farm ended after just five years, when Jack suffered a fatal stroke, at the age of 41. Widowed at age thirty-four, with five children, Reeva sold the farm and moved the family to the village of Delhi. She began to work as a secretary at SUNY Delhi.

As a single mother, Reeva did her best to foster her children's interests and abilities. Fortunately, her mother, Ruth Lawrence, had lived with the family throughout Reeva's marriage, and she provided vital support. So there were regular homemade meals, bicycles, music lessons, cats and dogs, dolls, sewing projects, needle crafts, model airplanes, Little League baseball, a bowling set for the front hall, and even a junk car in the yard for the neighborhood boys to tinker. And Reeva passed her driver's test!

After seven years alone, Reeva met her second husband, David Clark, at the First Presbyterian Church in Delhi. Love walked in, and they were married three months after their first date.

This new phase of life was filled with laughter and new experiences for Reeva. She learned to enjoy sleeping in a leanto, as long as the weather would allow it. They travel camped by car and in an open pickup truck, and took boat camping trips on Lake George and other waterways. All these trips usually involved her children and any number of hungry friends, along with other couples or families. Many happy memories were created.

Retiring from SUNY Delhi in 1978, Reeva helped care for her grandchildren, ran support for Dave, and taught piano lessons.

She avidly pursued her interest in sewing and needle crafts, always working on clothing, pictures, linens and quilts. She began to play the organ and accordion, and she joined Dave in roller skating, something he had loved for years. There were no dull moments.

Throughout her life, Reeva was a devout Christian, with an abiding faith in the power of God. In the early 1970s, she and Dave joined the fellowship of the Tabernacle of the Congregation. Reeva participated in the musical life of the church as a keyboard player and composer of music for praise. She and Dave participated in many church activities and developed deep lifelong friendships.

As the years passed, Dave and Reeva were able to remain at home, independent, until Dave's death in 2022. Although Reeva missed him terribly, she showed great strength in her remaining two and a half years. She maintained a regular schedule of meals and medications, cat care, television favorites, puzzles, devotions, and a running steno pad commentary on the life of Elk Creek. Her secret to long life was definitely at least three servings of fudge swirl ice cream every day! She will be sorely missed.

Reeva was predeceased by her parents, her husbands, granddaughter, Abby Borow Ezero and grandson, James Alden "Jack" Curley.

She is survived by her children, Reeva (Victor) Bellard, Glenn Curley, Jane (Harold Eustis) Curley, David (Kathleen) Curley, and Lynne (Robert) Borow. She will be fondly remembered by grandchildren Sarah (Carl) Chapman, David (Melissa) Bellard, Emily (Juan) Levy-Espierd, Colin Eustis, Elizabeth (Richard) Nevin, Deborah (David) Such, and Dianna (Rich) DePonto, and 13 great grandchildren.

Reeva's family wishes to thank the staff of Helios Care for their support during Reeva's last days.

A celebration of Reeva's life will be held at 2 p.m. Saturday Nov. 23, at the Tabernacle of the Congregation, 5673 State Route 28, Franklin. Burial will be in Woodland Cemetery, Delhi.

Please visit www.macarthurfh.com to share a condolence with Reeva's family.