Gloria Anita Reaves Tarver

Gloria Anita Reaves Tarver, wife, mother, sister, daughter, and friend, will be remembered for her kindness, intelligence, varied talents, and deep love of her family. She passed away on July 13, 2023, in Marietta, Georgia after a long battle with Alzheimer’s disease. Gloria was born the third of four daughters to John Henry Reaves, Jr., and El’Dora Reaves (née: Whidby) on Friday, June 15, 1956 in Orange Memorial Hospital, Orange, New Jersey. She grew up surrounded by family in Newark, New Jersey, and considered her sisters and cousins as her closest friends throughout her life. From a young age, Gloria excelled in school and was counted among the top of her class. She attended Peshine Avenue Elementary School and later her academic talents earned her a spot in the competitive School Within A School system of Malcolm X Shabazz High School where she graduated in 1973. Her aptitude for math and science led her to pursue and earn a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering degree from the New Jersey Institute of Technology (Newark, NJ) in 1978. It was on the New Jersey Institute of Technology campus in September 1973 where Gloria met her future husband, Benjamin Alexander Tarver. Gloria and Ben were married at the Community Church of God on Grant Avenue, Newark, New Jersey on Saturday, January 7, 1978. From this union two children were born: Benjamin Alexander Tarver, Jr. (1982 - 2002) and Adrienne Elise Tarver (b. 1985). After marriage, Gloria and Ben moved their family to Marietta, GA in 1988 and then to Lindenhurst, IL suburbs in 1995. Upon Ben’s retirement, they returned to Georgia in 2015 residing in Kennesaw. Throughout Gloria’s adult life, she demonstrated her intellectual talents working as a Chemical/Process Engineer for several companies, including Ambitech Engineering and Lockwood Greene. She humbly excelled in this notably male-dominated career path, positively influencing those around her with encouragement and through example. She was always a champion for her children’s education, advocating for their advancement in school, and a constant teacher at home. Her children’s friends fondly remember her welcoming spirit, the great aromas that wafted from her kitchen, and the chemistry class study sessions she led at their dining room table. She loved to read, play word and numbers games, cook and bake, making carrot cake, coconut cake, or the annual tradition of making Christmas cookies with her kids. She was the leader of her daughter’s Girl Scout Troop 8188 in Marietta, Georgia in the 1990’s and shared her many talents of sewing, crafting, science, and baking through this role. At a young age, she became a skilled seamstress and often made clothes for herself and her sisters, later making clothes for her children and notably making wedding dresses for herself and her youngest sister, Francine. She is survived by her husband, Benjamin Alexander Tarver, and her daughter, Adrienne Elise Tarver. She is predeceased by her son, Benjamin Alexander Tarver, Jr. (born 1982, died 2002) and her parents, John Henry Reaves, Jr., and El’Dora Reaves in 2006 and 2009 respectively. Gloria is also survived by three sisters: Lenor Reese (née: Reaves; Charles), Linda Adele Reaves, and Francine Annette Covington (née: Reaves), her aunt, Charlotte Elaine Caldwell (née: Whidby), sister-in-law Linda Susan Price (née: Tarver), and a host of nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends. She will be greatly missed by her family and friends.

Gloria Anita Reaves Tarver

June 15, 1956 - July 31, 2023