Charles Lavers

We celebrate the life and love of Charles Henry Lavers, Jr., of Pulaski, Tennessee, born August 18, 1929, and died June 15, 2020.

Charles lived an almost unerringly morally strong, fiercely loyal and physically robust life. His vast experiences were countless and wide-ranging. His stories, which have enthralled many, would fill a book.

Charles was born and grew up in Babylon, New York, on Long Island, and was the oldest male child of Charles H. and Irene (Kruse) Lavers. The family moved to central Florida after Charles graduated from high school. He served as a Seaman First Class Petty Officer in the United States Navy during the Korean War, then attended the University of Florida to study architecture. Life had a way of changing his plans, and he left college. He got married, and it failed. Twice. He worked numerous and varied jobs, including assistant to famed herpetologist Ross Allen.

He was in his late thirties when his life took a serious change in direction: he met recently-divorced mother-of-five Jewell McCarn Reaves, married her and went back to complete his architecture studies at the U of F. He had his hands full working part-time and studying, while dealing with his new family whose kids ranged from six to eighteen years old. To his two youngest step-children, Charles would become their main male role model, more than their natural father who they barely knew.

His work as an architect for the US Civil Service took him to Huntsville, Alabama; Hill Air Force Base, Utah; and Long Beach, California.

The marriage was strong for over 21 years, when Jewell passed away at age 63. She and Charles had dreamed of buying a farm in Tennessee, and after Jewell’s passing, that dream became reality when Charles, on his own now, bought an old 25 acre homestead south of Pulaski. He welcomed his step-children at the farm, then their children, and then their children’s children. And that is where he lived for nearly 30 years, right up until a few months before his death. Charles felt uncomfortable dating and never remarried having found and lost his true love. 

He leaves three brothers: John (Grace) Lavers,  Robert (Dawn) Lavers, and John David Eve (adopted); two sisters, Gloria (Morris) Hannemann and Patricia Eve (adopted); five step-children: Pamela Reaves, Gael (Tom) Shults, David (Ariane) Park Reaves, III, Giles (Melora) Reaves, and Jacquelyn (Seth) Lawson; 14 grandchildren, 15 great-grandchildren, and numerous nieces and nephews. We miss the guidance and love of our Dad, Granddad and Great Granddad.

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