Luther Lassiter spent his final days practically broke, living alone in the house of his childhood in Elizabeth City, on a pension provided by oil tycoon Walter Davis, who was a lifelong friend of Lassiter's. When they were children during the Great Depression, Lassiter would give Davis, who came from a poor farming family, a couple of dollars whenever he needed it, which often meant the difference between eating and not eating. Davis never forgot Lassiter's kindness, and repaid him by taking care of his necessities in his last years. To escape his loneliness, Lassiter would often ride his bicycle a couple of blocks away to his younger brother Clarence's and his wife, Barbara's, house, and hang out and play with their two sons.