Linnie M. Lee-Chin

Linnie Maud Lee-Chin was born on June 22, 1926 in Fairy Hill, Portland, Jamaica. She was the first child of Indiana Anderson (Lee), a descendant of the Moore Town Maroons, businesswoman, and celebrated community leader in the Boston Beach area of Portland, Jamaica, and King Lee-Chin (李晋卿 or Lǐ jìn qīng), a businessman from Nankeng Village, Guangdong Province, China. Linnie attended St. Anthony's Catholic Boarding School and White’s Commercial College in Port Antonio before marrying Leslie (Lester) Hepburn White from Warsop, Trelawny in the Port Antonio Anglican Church. They lived for many years in Lyssons, St. Thomas, Jamaica. She was the mother of six children, Claire, Sybil, John, Phillip, Olive Grace, and Alburn Anthony.

Following a divorce from Lester, Linnie worked as a manager at National Dry Cleaners in Kingston and lived in the Harbour View community. Eventually, she emigrated to Brooklyn, New York, USA in 1968, excelling as a merchandiser with the Kinney shoe company in Manhattan, New York. In 1975, she moved to Toronto, Canada to join her children Sybil, Claire, and Alburn Anthony, and to be closer to her brothers Aston, Cals, and Churchill and their families.

A salesperson cherished by the Kinney Shoe Corporation in Canada, Linnie enjoyed the interaction with the customers in the Bramalea community and in Brampton, a city in which she also lived. Linnie became so successful in sales that for 16 years, she was recognized as the top salesperson for Kinney in Canada, winning many awards and accolades from the company.

In 1990, Linnie retired from Kinney and moved to Miami, Florida, USA where she purchased her retirement home. After a long friendship, she married Dunstan Wellington (Daniel) Burnett in 1992; he succumbed to illness and died shortly after.

Linnie was a devout Christian; she enjoyed attending church and hosting bible studies in her home. She loved cooking and pampered her children and grandchildren with their special dishes. Her table was always packed for Holiday dinners. Her love of gardening supplied fresh fruits and vegetables and beautiful flowers. Linnie went on many trips abroad, visiting London, Vancouver, Bermuda, New Zealand, the Southwestern US, and going on several cruises in the Caribbean.

In 2006, she sold her home in Miami and moved to Palm Bay, Florida, to be closer to her children Claire and Alburn Anthony and their respective spouses John and Shirley. Over the years, she was visited by a host of loving family members and was always happy to embrace and pray mightily for them.

As her health declined, she was lovingly cared for by Mrs. Hyacinth Salmon. Eventually, it was decided that the two should reside with Alburn Anthony and Shirley. The Lord saw best to take her home on Tuesday, August 18, 2020.

Left to mourn her passing include:

Children: Claire Ann, Sybil Veronica, John Horace Somerville, Phillip Barrington, Olive Grace, and Alburn Anthony.

Daughters-in-law: Shirley, Shona, and Phillip’s fiancée Veronica (Cherry) Moncur.

Sons-in-Laws: Warren and John.

Grandchildren: Roy Andrew, Leslie, Mark, Whitney, Amanda, Michael, Tanisha, David, Brian, Jennifer, and Courtney.

Great-grandchildren: Alexandra, Bryce, Ari, Kai, Wesley, Nahkim, David, Jada, Kymora, Tahj, Dayvon, Daylon, Daycia, Tsehai, Kymari, Aria, Reginald, and Russell.

Great-great grandchildren: Aiden, Dalayah, and Jaxon.

Brothers: Hubert Aston, Kenneth, Cecil, Cals, Oswald, and Churchill.

Sisters: Margaret (Pansie), Ivy, Hazel, and Monica and Dorothy in China.

Sisters in-law: Elin, Ruth, and Beverley.

Linnie Lee-Chin was a beautiful, God-fearing, devoted matriarch. It is with saddened hearts that we bid her farewell. We wish her peace as she takes her place among the angels. Linnie, thank you for all your prayers, hugs, gentle support, and encouragement. Please continue to send them down to us from above. We will be loving you forever.