John Lee Devine Sr. was the first of two children born to Chester Devine and Earie Turner on March 2, 1927, in the small town of Norristown, Georgia.

John’s parents were very young and moved to the Northeast during the great migration to provide for their child. He spent his early childhood with his grandmother and 13 aunts and uncles.

In rural Georgia, John was part of a sharecropper family. There was no time for school, so he would spend his days plowing fields for 50 cents a day and his afternoons hunting with his uncles in the fields for food. Those days instilled a strong work ethic in him that would last the rest of his life.

Meanwhile, his mother saved and was able to bring him to Jersey City, New Jersey, at the age of 19 to be reunited with his mother and younger sister, Katie.

In Jersey City he met and fell in love with the girl next door – literally. He lived at 32 Grant Avenue and Vermella Keith lived next door at 34 Grant Avenue. The two soon became a couple and dated for seven years.

During their seven years together, John was called into service by the U.S. Army from 1952 to 1954. He rose to the rank of corporal for his leadership skills but was demoted to private first class when – in his words – he was called the wrong thing once too often. When he served in Korea, he was part of a group that built bridges so American troops could transport supplies under the cover of darkness.

For his efforts, he received five medals – the Korean Service medal, two bronze service stars, the national defense service medal and the United Nations Service medal.

After the war John and Vermella eloped on Jan. 14, 1956, in Niagara Falls, New York. The marriage lasted 57 years until she passed in 2013.

Two years later, the Devines were blessed with their first child, a daughter named Myrna Patryce, a joy in their life. She was showered with love by the entire family, but tragedy struck when Myrna was killed by a car as a child on her way to school.

Myrna’s passing left a void in the family even after a second child, John Jr., arrived in 1968. Though no one could replace the love they had for Myrna they poured their love into their son.

It also lit a spark in John Sr. as he redoubled his efforts to provide for the family. He drove a truck for a piping company that helped build the original Twin Towers in New York City. He also started the first black-owned cab business in Jersey City. For his accomplishments, he was named one of the top ten black businessmen in Jersey City in 1973.

The business flourished and enabled the family to move to Orlando in 1978. His ‘retirement’ did not last long. He continued to work, and even after his retirement he would still cut yards and do small jobs until diabetes slowed him down in the late-1990s.

He gave his life to the Lord in Orlando as well. He was baptized into the Seventh-day Adventist Church in 1980, and was a founding member and longtime head deacon of the North Orlando Seventh-day Adventist Church.

In 2008, the Devines moved to Hollywood, Florida, to be closer to their son and grandchildren.

John Sr. kept active and maintained good health. He attended the Miramar senior center and went swimming twice weekly.  Even in 90s, he did not need assistance walking until the early 2020.

Despite struggling to regain his short-term memory in recent years, John Sr. could still remember family and friends from years gone by and enjoyed retelling stories of major milestones in his life.

A few days before Christmas 2020, he entered the hospital for health issues.

Though the hospital staff was optimistic he would return home, John died in his sleep on December 30 at 11:30 a.m.

John was preceded in death by his wife (Vermella Devine), daughter (Myrna Devine), father (Chester Devine), mother (Earie Turner) and sister (Katie Earles).

John Sr. left behind his son John Devine Jr. (Leslie); four grandchildren, Maya Victoria, Myles Jonathan, John Lee Devine III and Jaxon Benjamin and a host of nieces and nephews generations deep.

Due to the Coronavirus Pandemic, the family is offering a live video stream of the service on Tuesday, January 5, 2021 at 4:30 PM. This will be LIVE on the Boyd-Panciera Family Funeral Care Facebook page at:

Hover & Click to the Right of the Arrow —> BOYD-PANCIERA FAMILY FUNERAL CARE FACEBOOK

Visitation to be held on Tuesday, January 5, 2021 from 4:00 PM – 6:00 PM, with Prayer Service at 5:00 PM at Boyd-Panciera Family Funeral Care, 1600 N. University Drive, Pembroke Pines, Florida 33024.

Interment to occur at Machpelah Cemetery in North Bergen, New Jersey.

Please note modifications are in place regarding Visitation and Services due to the Coronavirus. Boyd-Panciera is following all local and state guidelines and is taking all the necessary precautions to ensure the safety and health of our families and staff to halt the spread of COVID-19.  Social Distancing and Face Masks are in effect.