Reena C. Nayak

Reena Nayak, 52, passed away on Saturday, January 27^th, at Jefferson County Health Center. Born and raised in New Delhi, India, Reena came to the Fairfield with her husband, Shreyash, in 1997. 

Antim Sanskar will be 1:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m. Sunday, January 28, 2024 at Behner Funeral Home in Fairfield. 

When she was diagnosed with her cancer 2.5 years ago, we were told by the doctors that her life expectancy was about 3 to 6 months. Reena, being the resolute tough human being that she was, fought it with superhuman strength and it was only during the last 30 days or so that she lost the battle as her body did not cooperate with her mental strength. 

Over the past 2.5 years, Reena’s superhuman strength allowed her to take aggressive chemo infusions at UIHC / JCHC, participate in phase 2 and 3 clinical trials at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester-MN and MSKCC in New York City.  She also took Ayurveda and Homeopathy based treatments and there were multiple times during the past 2.5 years that it seemed like she was going to beat all the odds and survive the disease but unfortunately a major health setback (during the clinical trial at Mayo Clinic) in the middle of 2023 derailed her efforts.

A shining member of the community, Reena was very enthusiastic about sharing her culture and love of cooking with everyone, whether it was setting up Diwali festivals each year or hosting get-togethers for events within the community. Reena was very passionate about education, assisting with many organizations within the Fairfield Community School District including the High School Band and the Future Business Leaders of America organizations. She believed that education was to make the next generations even better than the last and worked hard towards making sure that everyone had assistance and opportunities to follow their goals. In her free time, Reena loved to travel, making sure to see exotic places across the world while she had the chance. Before her passing, she was able to see multiple places that she had always dreamed of, bringing her immense joy. 

Reena is survived by her husband of 26 years, Shreyash; brother-Ashish; sister-Anju; mother-Daya; father-Abhai and her daughter, Paramita.