Tyrone C. Durham, funeral director
TYRONE C. DURHAM was pushing 40 before he decided what he wanted to do with his life. After managing two taverns owned by family members and working at a vending company operated by an uncle, Tyrone decided he wanted to become a funeral director.
TYRONE C. DURHAM was pushing 40 before he decided what he wanted to do with his life.
After managing two taverns owned by family members and working at a vending company operated by an uncle, Tyrone decided he wanted to become a funeral director.
He graduated from the McAllister School of Embalming, in New York City, in 1994, commuting every day from his home in Mount Airy, and went to work for the Julian V. Hawkins Funeral Home, in West Phladelphia, where his dapper good looks and friendly manner endeared him to the bereaved.
Tyrone Durham, who would relax at Philadelphia Park and at the Atlantic City casinos - where he excelled at the craps tables - a fanatical Phillies fan who had season tickets every year, and a doting husband, father and grandfather, died Nov. 2 of a brain embolism. He was 59.
When Tyrone and his bride, the former Esterlita Starkey, went on their honeymoon in 1977, he discovered craps on the cruise ship on the way to the Bahamas.
When they arrived at Paradise Island, he played at the casino there.
"He made so much money, they asked him to leave the casino," his wife said. "They thought he had to be cheating. He made enough money to pay for the honeymoon a couple of times over."
Tyrone was a health nut, his wife said. He worked out on a stationary bicycle in his basement two hours every day, made sure he ate right and didn't hesitate to tell others how to eat - a trait not always appreciated.
He was born in Philadelphia to Willie C. Durham and Sadie Harris. He graduated from Cardinal Dougherty High School in 1970. He met his future wife there, even though boys and girls were kept separate in those days.
He studied at Lincoln University, after which he helped manage the Casbah tavern, owned by his grandfather, William C. Durham, at 39th Street and Fairmount Avenue, and later his father's bar, Little Casbah, at 56th and Spruce streets.
At the same time, he serviced vending machines for First Choice Vending Co., owned by his uncle, Choice Durham.
Raising his own children and helping to raise his beloved grandchildren, Tyrone emphasized the importance of education. He was a stickler for good grades.
"If I brought home a 'C,' my father would kill me," his son, Grady, said.
Tyrone not only had season tickets to the Phillies, but he was an authority on the sport. He could name any player, recite the statistics and relate the details of important games.
"He was a man of authority," said his wife. "His stature was rather scary, but he was a teddy bear. He had a very kind heart. And he was a man of his word. If he told you he was going to do something, he would make sure it was done."
Besides his wife, son and grandchildren, he is survived by two daughters, Leigh Marie and Roselyn, and a brother, Fels Harris.
Services: 10 a.m. Saturday at St. Raymond Church, 1350 E. Vernon Road. Friends may call at 4 p.m. Friday at the Yarborough & Rocke Funeral Home, 1001 N. 63rd St., and at 8 a.m. Saturday at the church. Burial will be in Ivy Hill Cemetery, Woolston Avenue and Easton Road.