Obituary of Isiah Dupree

Remembering Isiah 

Our beloved Isiah Dupree quietly transitioned into eternal rest with our heavenly Father on Thursday, April 22, 2021. Isiah was born on January 13, 1949, in Sumter, South Carolina. He was the fifth eldest child of Joshua Dupree, Sr. and Susan (Dupree) Blackwell, and sibling to five brothers and two sisters. The family members were faithful parishioners of Union Station AME Church in Sumter and served the Lord as ushers every Sunday.

Isiah attended the public schools of Sumter, South Carolina. In high school, he received the Certificate of Merit for his faithful and efficient service as a student bus driver. Driving a school bus was just the beginning of his life-long passion for cars – from the 1978 Datsun 280Z to the 2007 Corvette.  Isiah loved them all.

Upon graduating from Lincoln High School in 1967, Isiah enlisted in the U.S. Army, commissioning at Fort Jackson, South Carolina, and served our country as a Morse Intercept Operator. He was stationed in Taiwan during the Vietnam War for two years and was honorably discharged in 1971 while commissioned in Warrenton, Virginia.

In 1971, with $300 in his pocket, Isiah moved to the Washington, DC area to find employment in finance. While there, he married his childhood sweetheart, Carmen Owens, in 1973, and they later welcomed two daughters, Kea and Lisa.

Isiah graduated from Washington Technical Institute with an Associate’s Degree in Applied Science, completed his undergraduate education at The University of Maryland University College, and received a Certificate of Completion of The Executive Potential Program from the Graduate School of USDA. His background in finance prompted him to become a member of a successful investment club. After working for 50 years, he ultimately retired from the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Federal Student Aid as a Supervisory Financial Management Specialist in 2017.

Those who knew him best appreciated his love of the Temptations, Earth, Wind and Fire, Luther Vandross, Stevie Wonder, and many others. Isiah became a “shutterbug” over the years, loving to work alongside his elder daughter, Kea, taking all types of photographs. Together they opened a successful photography studio of which he was very proud. He enjoyed going to Xtreme Xperience Driving Experience, where he could test drive some of his favorite exotic racing cars, including the Porsche 911 GT3 and the Lamborghini Huracan. He also loved to travel. In 2018, he spent two weeks traveling through Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam with his younger brother Gary. He also spent a week in Cuba on a guided photography tour.