Harold "David" Bell

February 15, 1950 – December 8, 2024

Harold D. Bell, age 74, of Winter Park, Florida passed away on Sunday, December 8, 2024

Harold David Bell was born in Grange Hill, Westmoreland, Jamaica on February 15, 1950. After graduating from Mannings High School, David went to work at the Frome Sugar Factory in Westmoreland while serving honorably in the Jamaica Defense Force. After leaving Frome, David joined Grace Kennedy, leaving Westmoreland for Kingston. Following Grace Kennedy, David went to work for Desnoes and Geddes. True to form, David maintain close ties to many friends and co-workers throughout the years.

After meeting in New York in the late 1970s, David married Yvonne (Hyde) and they emigrated to Orlando, Florida in 1985, where they raised their three children.

Within a few years of arriving in Orlando, David secured his real estate broker’s license and opened his own real estate brokerage and residential property management company, which he ran successfully for the next 35 years.

Throughout his professional life, David was known for his kindness and jovial demeanor. He had a unique greeting for almost everyone he knew. Whether it was one of his property owners, a tenant, or a vendor; he was beloved by all who worked with him.

A lifelong music lover, most weekends David could be found playing one of his curated playlists while grilling for his family and friends and then posted behind his bar telling stories of the antics he and his cousins would get into when they were young.

While David enjoyed many things, what David loved most was his family. From his youth in Grange Hill, where he grew up surrounded by his extended family, to raising his own children, David’s family was the center of his life. Foremost in that life was his wife, Yvonne. While their love story was born from tragedy, they rebuilt themselves together and constructed a warm and welcoming home with love that extended far beyond their own children.

David’s sharp-wittedness, calming presence, and unconditional love and support made him not only the strength and stay for his wife and children but a constant guide for his entire extended family. Uncle David was everyone’s favorite uncle. He was unfailingly patient, kind, honest and generous; always there to offer a listening ear and helping hand.

David was also a fighter. After being diagnosed with Brain Cancer in early 2021, David fought through intense chemotherapy treatments and beat cancer into remission by early 2022. When the cancer returned in early 2023, David was determined to again overcome this emperor of all maladies. David succumbed to his illness on December 8, 2024, after a long and well-fought battle.

David leaves behind his wife Yvonne, children Christopher, Shana, and Sean, three grandchildren, son-in-law and two daughters-in-law, his best friend and brother Maxie and sister-in-law Faye, and countless nieces and nephews.

David was predeceased by his parents, two brothers, two sisters, and several beloved cousins.

May his body rest and soul be at peace.