'Project Runway' alum Sha’Vi Lewis dies at 39

Sha’Vi Lewis, who appeared in season 18 of Project Runway, has passed away at the age of 39.

His aunt, Deidra DivaDoll Elkerson, announced the unfortunate news on Tuesday, February 25, via a Facebook post.

"My fabulous, talented nephew, Sha’Vi Lewis, is gone from this place. I won’t hear his greetings to me anymore, 'Hey Auntie Diva,'" she recounted while mourning the loss of her beloved nephew.

"I know he is in a much better place. I can just imagine the welcome he received when he got to those pearly gates, with so many loved ones who had gone before," she added in the lengthy message accompanied by a photo collage of Lewis.

According to TMZ, the Project Runway alum, whose full name is Franklin ShaVi’ Lewis Frierson Jr., breathed his last on Monday, February 24. His family did not reveal the cause of his death yet.

Lewis’ show time on the American television series was brief. In 2019, he appeared as a contestant on Project Runway, finishing in 10th place after being eliminated in the sixth episode.

Lewis is survived by his mother, Joyce Solomon-Frierson; his father, Franklin Frierson; his brother, Troy Solomon Frierson; his sister, Akira Frierson Wood; and his other family members.