James McMullen was born on Thursday, November 13, 1952, and was the second of four children born to James and Ann McMullen in Cleveland, OH.  His parents preceded him in death.  He accepted Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior at an early age at Friendship Baptist Church, but later rededicated his life to Christ at Zion Chapel Missionary Baptist Church.  He loved sports and often participated in football and track during high school and college.

James lived on 6406 Ruth Ave. in Cleveland, OH, where he has fond memories with his sisters, Gloria Jean and Gwen, and a host of family members who lived close to each other. While in the community, he attended Dike Elementary School.  The McMullen’s later moved to the Lee Harvard area and soon added an addition to the family, Angela. He attended Beehive Elementary, Charles W. Elliott, and John F. Kennedy High School. While attending John F. Kennedy High School, James played football for the MIGHTY, MIGHTY, Eagles under the legendary coach Roy Kidd for several years. He graduated June, 1972, and attended Ohio University in the fall on a football scholarship.  While he attended OU, he made two decisions that changed his life. First, he joined Omega Psi Phi and was part of a lifelong brotherhood that blessed him with friends who started to call him “Mac”, making him well-known around campus. And second, he reconnected with the woman who initially caught his eye in high school, Jocelyn Tatum, who he is loving called “Josh”.  They started dating and were married on May 13, 1978, in Cleveland, OH.  They had one (1) son, James Maurice, in September 1980.

James was a determined, hard worker who had several positions over the years, such as being a school bus driver, an employee at Republic Steel and UPS, working in real estate, and working for Cuyahoga County as an Appraiser. He was also an entrepreneur and created and owned a business, McMullen Appraisers. Mac loved football, basketball, running, and riding his bike. He was very active in his community and coached little league baseball, where his son was a southpaw pitcher and his parents and grandparents loved to watch him.

Favorite Things:

If you knew Mac, you knew he absolutely loved THE CLEVELAND BROWNS!! He was a die-hard Browns fan and member of the Dog Pound, avidly watching them season after season.  He also found another niche with cooking on the grill and barbecuing. His ribs, chicken, and shoulder were extraordinary and were usually prepared with Mac’s secret sauce! Mac and Josh enjoyed watching and attending CAVS games, traveling within the country and outside of the country too. He enjoyed planting flowers and gardening too.  James always enjoyed having fun. However, his most favorite thing was his FAMILY.  He was a devoted family man who had great first teachers his parents.  He loved his family deeply, wife, son, sisters, grandchildren, nieces, nephew and cousins.  He never missed a family gathering and would do anything for his family and friends.

After a brief illness, James was called by the Lord to transition to his eternal home on February 6^th, 2022.  James left here a devoted wife of 44 years (Jocelyn), son (James Maurice II (Kamilah)), his grand-children (Cameron, Elijah and Savannah), his sisters (Gloria Jean, Gwendolyn, Angela (Ludie)), in-loves (Eva Roberts, Diane Bynes , Donald (Cassandra)Wanda Tatum, and Alfred Roberts), a sister in love (Brenda Stewart), and a host of nieces, nephews,  family and friends who he deeply loved under the blessed assurance of God’s love to continue his legacy.