Earl was the youngest of 8 children. He was preceded in Death by his Mother and Father, Brothers Sonny, Eddie Joe, and Ernest Divin; Sisters Annie Divin & RosaLee Norville. Earl is survived by brothers Albert Divin of Cypress, TX. and Herbert Divin of Hitchcock, TX, and his sister-in-law Loretta McAdoo Divin of Cypress, TX. His beloved wife of 57 years Arlene Fontenot Divin, Sons Randy Gene Divin, Stacy Allan Divin, Michael Dayne Divin and his wife Melissa Lynn Divin; Grandchildren Kayla Shaye Divin Embody and her Husband Zach Embody of Bellville, Texas, Daryl Wayne Divin of Katy, Texas, Dakota Allan Evetts of Magnolia, Texas, and Carson Dayne Divin of Houston, Texas.
Earl grew up in the Houston/Katy area and attended Reagan High School. After the death of his father at the early age of 9, he took on miscellaneous jobs such as throwing a newspaper, at the A&P grocery store, the local Wabash feed store, and doing body work at the local body shop. After a short courtship to the love of his life, he married Arlene Ann Fontenot on April 24, 1966. Shortly after his marriage, Earl was drafted and spent his basic training at Fort Polk in La. He was stationed in San Antonio Tx., Colorado, Oklahoma, Germany, and Korea. Earl was trained as a tank mechanic and later received additional training as a biomedical repairman. The army was good for Earl, and he received his GED and college classes through the US Army. Earl served in the US Army just short of 6 years. Earl then worked a short time at Ben Taub Hospital in Houston until the position he was waiting for became available at the VA Hospital. He spent many evenings working side jobs in the biomedical field. Earl enjoyed his position at the VA hospital until retiring early after 24 years due to a back injury and many surgeries. Between the Army and the VA hospital, Earl served with the US Government for 30 years and received many awards and acknowledgements for his exemplary work. He was very honored to be a veteran and flew his flag with pride.
He spent many weekends working on vehicles for friends and family. The family moved to the well-known house on Hazelhurst in Spring Branch in the 70s, where he could often be found tinkering in the garage and drinking Schaefers Light. Earl enjoyed watching our Houston sports teams: the Astros, Rockets, and Texans. Earl was also preceded in death by his favorite dog Randall Hank, as well as countless ring-necked doves over the years.
His greatest pride were the three men he and Arlene raised and his Grandkids. Through all his hard work and extra jobs he didn't miss football and baseball practices and games for many years for his three boys. He was thrilled to have another girl in the family when his first grandchild was born "The apple of his eye” Kayla Shaye. He was also so excited for another girl she was bringing into the world with the announcement of his great granddaughter to arrive in February 2024.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Disabled American Veterans. (DAV)
Visitation with the family began at 10:00 a.m. on Friday, November 24, 2023 at Waltrip Funeral Directors, 1415 Campbell Road in Houston, Texas, where funeral services began at 12:00 noon. The Rite of Committal followed at 2:30 p.m. in St. Martin de Porres Catholic Cemetery, 33102 Haley Road in Waller, Texas.
The family hosted a reception at Willow Walk Clubhouse, 9955 Kemp Forest Drive in Houston from 5:00 p.m. until 8:00 p.m. with barbecue and refreshments being provided.
Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.waltripfuneraldirectors.com for the Divin family.
