John David Cinelli, greatly loved son, brother and friend to many kindred souls around the country, died unexpectedly on July 24, 2025 at his home nestled amongst the mountains of northeast West Virginia. He was 76 years old.
John’s journey through life started in Chicago and included stops in Anderson, South Carolina and Washington, D.C. before moving to West Virginia. He graduated from T.L. Hanna High School in Anderson (1966) — where he sat first chair clarinet in the concert band and performed as drum major of the marching band — and attended Clemson University.
His love of music, from his high school band days to private, personal concerts on his electronic and grand piano keyboards in his mountain home, provided a soulful backdrop to his business career and personal life. He played tunes from a wide variety of musical genres. He frequently watched masterful pipe organ performances of classical works and marveled at inspiring group and solo vocal performances delivered by little-know artists.
John quietly built a tax and financial advising firm based in Washington, D.C., and fell in love with his life partner C. Earle Miller. Over the years, John and Earle created a separate marketing company, The Studio, which became the representative for Zippo cigarette lighters and associated products. Earle died in 2018 and John ‘retired’ from Zippo in 2024.
Throughout his life John could be found perusing the pages of assorted automobile-themed publications. He was a Board member of the Tri-Valley Chapter of the Lambda Car Club, and its webmaster for many years. In addition to his club membership, he helped Earle restore a 1970 AMC Javelin that won numerous awards at regional antique car shows.
Zippo enhanced John’s life-long love affair of cars by including he and Earle as part of the company’s sponsorship support team at the annual Watkins Glen (New York) NASCAR Cup Series race. They rode in the pace car and celebrated with race winners a number of years.
For the Cinelli family, John’s greatest love — and gift — was his dedication to digging up facts and stories about ancestors from Italy and other locales. Years of painstaking research allowed him to surprise the family with not only basic information about many colorful characters, but connections to some of the country’s most historical moments (i.e a most-likely link to the brother of Patrick Henry of Revolutionary War fame).
John’s parents — John Jasper Cinelli and Joan Eheart Cinelli — preceded him in death. He is survived by brothers Michael A. Cinelli (Eileen O’Grady) of Santa Rosa Beach, Florida; Peter A. Cinelli (Peggy) of Pelzer, South Carolina; niece Jennifer S. Cinelli (Milford, Delaware); and nephew Christopher J. Cinelli (Bradenton, Florida).
John’s ashes will be interred alongside Earle’s during a private ceremony at Congressional Cemetery in Washington, D.C. A memorial service celebrating John’s life is being planned by his car club friends to be held at a date to be determined.
All arrangements are by McKee Funeral Home, Baker, WV.
