JELLEY, Paul "Duke" David, 82 of Port St. Lucie, FL passed away peacefully on Saturday, October 30, 2021 with his beloved wife and partner of 42 years, Annie and daughter Kathleen by his side holding his hands. Duke was born in Boston, MA on June 20, 1939 to the late Helen M. "Sid" (Harvey) and the late Walter G. Jelley. He grew up in Allston, MA and loved playing baseball as a kid.

Duke very proudly served our country as an Airman in the United States Air Force for 4 years. He worked as an electrician on military jets.
Duke was an extremely proud President of his Union for the Boston Public Schools Custodians' Association and a staunch union supporter in our country. He and Annie took labor law courses through the Archdiocese of Boston.

Duke was an avid sports fan and especially fond of baseball, football and horse racing. The Boston Red Sox and New England Patriots were two of his favorite teams. However, when his teams were playing poorly especially the recent Sox loss in the playoffs, he would yell at the TV loud enough where they probably could hear him wherever they were playing. He loved watching and betting on (and not happily losing) on horse racing especially the Kentucky Derby, the Preakness Stakes, and the Belmont Stakes. It would thoroughly annoy him when he studied the racing program stats, placed his bet and lost while Annie would play their Boston area code 617 and win. He loved telling stories of playing baseball as a kid, getting into fistfights and of his Air Force days with his buddies Abe, Mo, George and Mikie affectionately known as the "wine brothers". They had lost touch after serving but regained their connection some years ago and had several reunions where they reminisced and teased each other relentlessly.

Duke was an amazing singer, dancer and cook. Annie always said his voice reminded her of Hank Williams. He was known for his chili, pea soup and gumbo. If you've had any of them, you know you had to drink from a fire hose to put out the numbness of your lips and throat from how spicy they were. He was very well read and could argue anyone under the table about any topic but especially politics. He was the neighborhood handyman. He could fix anything or have any item a neighbor needed in the garage, which is so full of anything under the sun, the car doesn't fit.

Paul worshipped Annie, his wife and partner for over 42 years and they lovingly called each other the nickname "Jell". They did everything together and were perfectly content in each' other's company. Every morning he brought her coffee and kissed her and every evening when they went to bed, they kissed and said I love you. They traveled across the country and to Canada to research his families' ancestry. They moved to Las Vegas after retiring from the City of Boston then relocated to Port St. Lucie, FL.

He was very proud of all of his 5 children. When Annie met Duke and she introduced him to Kathleen. She was 14 and not happy to meet him. Over the years, their bond grew. He gave her solid advice on any and every topic (often unsolicited). He taught her how to be self-sufficient and wanted her to know how to do absolutely anything a man can do. She was one of the few who could stand up to him and argue right back but then they would hug, kiss and go on with something else. He took great joy in waiting on Annie and Kathleen when they had their happy hour on the lanai bringing them wine and snacks. They called him the cabana boy. Among the many hats he wore included being a TSA officer along with Annie for 3 years at McCarron International Airport in Las Vegas, Vice President of the Clubside HOA and he was a member of The Retired State, County, and Municipal Employees' Association of Massachusetts.

Duke leaves behind his cherished best friend, Anne M. (Sullivan) Jelley, his sister Ellen LaCivita and her husband Richard of Halifax, MA, his brother-in-law Dr. John G. Sullivan and his wife Margaret of Naples, FL his daughters Kathleen (Hurley) Hanefeld and her husband Kirk of Port St. Lucie, FL, Paula Broderick and her late husband Thomas of Melrose, MA, Dina Jelley and her partner Robert O'Connor of Plymouth, MA, his sons David Jelley, Robert Jelley and his wife Lorri of Melrose MA. His grandchildren, DJ, Robert, Timothy, Daniel, Maria, Joe, Christina and her husband Stephen, Melina, and Virginia, his great-grandchildren CJ and Cullen as well as many relatives and friends. He had a very special place in his heart for Annie's niece, Caitlin (Sullivan) Spaulding of Hobe Sound, FL.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 10:00 AM on Tuesday, November 9, 2021 at St. Bernadette Catholic Church, 350 NW California Blvd, Port St. Lucie, FL 34986. The Funeral Mass will be livestreamed at the following link: https://youtu.be/e27V1n67Euc

Also, in the rare instance that the stream gets dropped live, viewers can find the reconnected stream on our website here: https://stbernadetteslw.org/livestream

Interment and Military Honors will take place at 2:00 PM, Friday, November 19, 2021 at South Florida National Cemetery in Lake Worth.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Disabled American Veterans' Charity https://www.dav.org/