Herbert Curtis Boyd Jr., 65, loading dock worker and DJ
Mr. Boyd was a precocious youngster. At age 8, he figured out how to get around on SEPTA. As a teenager, he danced on American Bandstand.
Herbert Curtis Boyd Jr., 65, a loading dock worker who made a name for himself in Philadelphia as a DJ specializing in R&B music, died Wednesday, May 17, from a stroke at Bryn Mawr Hospital.
He had suffered the stroke at home in West Philadelphia on May 16 and was taken to Lankenau Medical Center and then transferred to Bryn Mawr, his family said.
"Herbie," as he was known to relatives, had worked for Sears. He held various jobs, the last of which was as a loading dock technician, before retiring in 1989 with 20 years of service. In later years, he found part-time employment as a security officer with several retail and manufacturing companies in Philadelphia.
Mr. Boyd then began a third career as one of the city's R&B music mixologists, or DJs. He entertained patrons at the Circles Lounge near Broad and Loudon Streets. The last time he performed was two years ago, his family said.
When Mr. Boyd became convinced that inner-city residents had too few opportunities to get out of the city and enjoy themselves, he informally arranged, promoted, and conducted ski trips to the Poconos.
Born in Philadelphia, he was the only child of Shirley and Herbert Boyd Sr. After his parents separated, his grandmother Jennie Wright-Evans, a Baptist lay minister, became his surrogate mother. She instilled in him a strong moral code and work ethic, his family said.
Mr. Boyd was a precocious child. At age 8, he learned how to ride the transit system and got himself around, to the amazement of his cousins and family members. He also was a good student, completing his homework assignments on his own from an early age.
In 1969, Mr. Boyd graduated from Germantown High School. He was a skilled dancer, so when Dick Clark came looking for regular dancers for his after-school television dance program, American Bandstand, Mr. Boyd signed up. "He loved to dance," his family said.
He was married to Valarie A. Smith. The couple had a son before divorcing. After many years of bachelorhood, Mr. Boyd found a soul mate in Sabrina Turner, whom he married on June 27, 2015. The last two years of his life with Turner were his happiest, he told relatives.
"We love to eat," Turner said. "We ate at the Chart House [in South Philadelphia]. We went to casinos, New Orleans. It was short, but we had a lovely time."
Besides his wife and former wife, he is survived by a son, Curtis Herbert Keyes; stepson Michael Samuel; a grandson; an uncle, Raymond Hackney, who served as a surrogate father; and many cousins.
Funeral services were Thursday, May 25, with interment in Mount Peace Cemetery.