Lloyd James, 87, most recently of Brighton, MA, passed away on June 23rd from complications resulting from a previous fall.

Lloyd was born in Ahoskie, NC to George and Corine James on April 18th, 1937. The middle of 3 children, he attended James Monroe High School in the Bronx, where he met the lovely Sandra Silverstein, who was one year his junior.  In 1957, not long after they'd both graduated, "Hank" and "Sandy" married, settling in Kew Gardens, Queens for 3 years before moving out to Plainview, Long Island, where they raised their two sons, Craig and Brett.

A big sports fan, Lloyd had baseball bats, basketballs, tennis rackets and bowling balls in his children's hands as soon as they were old enough to know what to do with them.  Growing up in the Bronx, his baseball allegiance was to the Yankees (with Mickey Mantle being his hero), though after moving to Long Island, Lloyd raised his children to be ardent Mets fans (though one of them, curiously, had him buy a Cubs uniform while on a vacation to the baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown!). But he himself always remained loyal to his beloved Yankees.

The consummate family man, Lloyd lived for his boys and his wife.  No one in the extended family can forget the backyard Summer barbecues with "Uncle Hank" in his element grilling up burgers and hot dogs for everyone under the shade of the weeping willow tree. Every now-grown up kid in the neighborhood will remember Mr. James "Hitting 'em out" (sponge balls) in the court next to the house on Sherman Avenue. He took the family on vacations to upstate New York (Howe Caverns) and to Toronto and Montreal, Canada.  Once the kids were out of the house, he fulfilled his wife's dreams of a European vacation, traveling to England and Italy, and of a Hawaiian vacation.

It wasn't until the boys were grown that they were able to realize and appreciate the sacrifices Lloyd made for their benefit, working late afternoons and evenings selling encyclopedias when they were young, and weeklong road trips away from home selling advertising space on discount cards when they were older.

The transition from a lifetime spent in New York up to Boston might have unsettled some people, but not Lloyd.  An adaptable man, he took the relocation to a new state in stride. He and Sandra settled into their assisted living facility, Providence House, where his daily routine included feeding the pigeons, who would flock to him wherever they saw him. He also launched, "Poker with Lloyd," a twice-weekly penny ante game for residents, which he patiently taught to those who'd never played - even going so far as to create a "crib sheet" of poker hand rankings for them. Both of these activities brought him great satisfaction.

Lloyd is survived by his children, Craig and Brett, his two daughters-in-law, Chrissy and Nancy, and three grandchildren, Zach, Juliana, and Caroline. He will be buried in the same plot as Sandra, who predeceased him by 2 years, at New Montefiore Cemetery, where a graveside service will be held at 1:30PM on Friday, July 5th.  Shiva will be held at the home of his son Brett, in Commack New York, after the service. The family requests any donations in Lloyd's honor be made to the ASPCA.