James Joseph Melia, 47, departed this life on Friday, August 2, 2013 in Melbourne, FL. Born on February 5, 1966 in Farmingdale, New York, he was the child of the late Daniel and Anne (McAuley) Melia. The family moved to Florida and settled in Sebastian where he was raised. He furthered his education by attending Florida State University where he obtained a Bachelor's degree in Economics and later pursued a Master's degree from Nova Southeastern University in Education Administration. James has been a resident of Brevard County for 17 years and taught at various schools throughout Brevard. He was honored to become the Assistant Principal at West Shore High School in Melbourne. James loved golfing and was a true New York Yankee fan. "Go Yankees." He is survived by his beloved wife of 8 ½ years, Machelle Deruelle; 5 children, Daniel, Nicholas, Joshua, Cecilia, and Emily Deruelle; mother-in-law, Oma Caywood of Austin, TX; siblings, Mary Melia (Steve Hamburger) of Wilmington, NC; Michael Melia of Sebastian, FL; Eileen McElwee (Michael), of Melbourne, FL; Daniel Melia(Maureen Galvin) of Rockville Centre, NY; Thomas Melia (Lucy) of Massapequa, NY; Steven Melia of Wilmington, NC; 16 nieces and nephews. The memories that were made will truly be cherished. Family welcomes you to join them to celebrate his life at the Historic Cocoa Village Playhouse, 300 Brevard Avenue, Cocoa, FL 32922 on Friday, August 9, 2013 from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, August 10, 2013 at Ascension Catholic Church in Melbourne followed by inurnment at Sebastian Cemetery, Sebastian, FL. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in his memory to: the Historic Cocoa Village Playhouse.