ERNEST HARRY CUFF:  1929-2020

 Ernest Cuff passed away in peace and surrounded by love, on January 8, 2020, at the age of 90.

 On July 1, 1929, Artaxerxes and Esther (Pierce) Cuff welcomed a baby boy, Ernest Harry, in their home at 522 Mt. Pleasant Avenue.  His sisters, Doris (Tyler), Gladys (William Thomas Hall, Sr. and Smith), Esther (Watson) and Carol (Houston) delighted in their newborn brother.  Ernest grew strong, playful and curious, and his sisters never hesitated to treat him like the baby brother.  

 Ernest finished Germantown High School in 1948, and shortly after joined the Army.  On September 9, 1950, he married his high school sweetheart, Pearl Elaine Green, and soon after headed for Korea in the first integrated Armed Services. He saw combat as part of the 187th Airborne, and was wounded in battle after only three months.  His injury resulted in permanent nerve damage that cost him use of his right arm, along with over two years of painful, often traumatic recovery in VA hospitals.  

 When Ernest was able to reunite with his bride, the couple settled in the Germantown section of Philadelphia where their family expanded to include eight children; William Loatman, Esther Patrice, Ernest Alton, Darrell Grant, Deborah Ann, Kenneth Allen, Robert Mark and Jeanne Elizabeth.  Ernest was a loving family man who enjoyed spending quality time with the family.  He was a devout Christian who faithfully attended Sunday services with his family, sang in the Church Choir and participated in many church groups.  He loved loading up the family in the station wagon and taking great trips to the Poconos Mountains, miniature golfing, parks, etc. Not only was he diligent with his family, he was also hard working.  His career included jobs with the U.S. Post Office, a major oil company and Edgcomb Steel, as well as a variety of side jobs around his neighborhood.

 After 25 years of marriage, Ernest and Pearl made a life decision to go their separate ways.  Ernest then married again, and moved with Druscilla to Fresno, California, where they lived quietly for 25 years.  Ernest retired early because of the challenge of his disabled arm, but continued to pursue many of the things his mind was eager to explore, like pottery, architecture and more choral singing; and his inquiring heart kept seeking deeper spiritual understanding.  In that quest, he came across a book about Paul Cuffee, a Black Quaker and highly successful merchant seaman, entrepreneur and visionary living in New England (1759-1817). 

 After Druscilla passed in 2005, Ernest moved back to Philadelphia to be closer to his family, and also to explore more about Quakers, as Paul Cuffee’s story and example touched him deeply. With the help of his niece Carol Mack, he found the Chestnut Hill Friends Meeting in the fall of 2006, and there met Ellen Deacon who had also just begun to attend, and was to become his third wife. After forming a deep friendship and sense of a powerful spiritual connection, they became clear to marry under the care of this Meeting of which both had become members, on January 3, 2009. 

 Ernest and Ellen had some good and blessed years enjoying each other‘s minds and sharing many things, including theater, nature, and a continued deepening of their spiritual journeys. They particularly enjoyed being silly and affectionate with each other in ways that might have been thought inappropriate to their age. They also saw each other through some hard times, especially the loss of two of Ernest’s beloved children, Deborah and Darrell.  One of Ernest’s favorite pastimes was exploring his family genealogy, and sharing about that with his only surviving sister at that time, Carol Houston.

 When Ernest’s cardiovascular disease grew to the point that it impaired his ability to live life on his own, Ellen attended him almost daily at his nursing home which was minutes from their home. They also went out as often as possible on “dates” to theater and movies and favorite restaurants. Ernest’s family also found ways of spending time with him there, including a blessed interval during which Pearl also was a resident, and the surviving family could be together a little as they had been long ago.

 In Ernest’s final two years, his son Kenneth was also able to play an active role in helping with his care. Ernest was brought to his home with Ellen for his final time, and Ken and Mark, with Jeanne on the phone, gathered to say goodbye to their dad soon after he passed. Ernest was cremated according to his wishes, and his ashes will be taken to places that were of deep meaning to him and his family.

 At the time of his passing, Ernest was a member of Chestnut Hill Friends Meeting and of Ujima  Friends Peace Center. He was a Purple Heart veteran. 

 Ernest will be lovingly remembered by his wife, Ellen Deacon Cuff; children, Kenneth Allen, Robert Mark (Gina), Jeanne Cuff-Lloyd; 2 daughters-in-law (Alfreda) and (Sylvia) and 1 son-in-law (James); 17 grandchildren; 19 great grandchildren; 2 great-great grandchildren and numerous family members and friends. 

 We would like to express a sincere thank you to his nieces and nephews, Edgar (Celeste) Houston, Jesse (Teresa) Houston, Freddy Tyler and Billy Tyler who spent much needed quality time with Uncle Ernie.  We also appreciate the members of Chestnut Hill Friends Meeting, who also supported Ernie and Ellen through his time in nursing care.

 Ernest was predeceased by his parents and siblings, and five of his children:  Ernest Alton, Esther Patrice, Deborah Ann, William Loatman and Darrell Grant, and his grandson Brian Lloyd.