Donald L. Davis

Donald Davis, a lifelong resident of Mount Washington, died peacefully in the presence of his family on November 21. He was 90.
Don attended Mount Washington Elementary School, where he made friends for life, and he graduated from Withrow High School. After four years of service in the United States Air Force, he returned to Mount Washington to marry his sweetheart and raise a family. He enrolled in the civil engineering program at the University of Cincinnati.

Don was a leader in the Mount Washington community. He regularly organized the installation of holiday lights on the water tower and was the treasurer of the celebration of Mount Washington's bicentennial. He was a season's ticket holder for the Bengals for almost thirty years, starting with their first season in 1968. At the time of his death, he had been a member of Mount Washington Presbyterian Church for 75 years.

He was always on the go. A regular golfer, he shot a hole-in-one at the California Golf Course. Years later, he later taught his grandsons how to swing a golf club at the Lunken driving range. He spent most weekends on the Ohio River and vacations on the inland lakes in Michigan with his family and friends - and was always willing to drive a water skier or to teach someone how to ski. He and his wife, Marianne, have been members of the Cincinnati Nature Center for decades.

Don was a woodworker and handyman. He built decks, fixed boats, and created several heirlooms that his family treasures, including an armoire and wooden boxes. For his grandsons, he created a rocking horse, a firehouse, and a barn for a creche set.

In his retirement, Don was a docent at the Tristate Warbird Museum and studied World War II history, focusing on the Allied Invasion of Sicily, where his brother Jack fought under the command of Gen. George S. Patton.

Don had the amazing ability to cheat death. After his open-heart surgery in 1993, he dedicated himself to early-morning rehab sessions for years to come. Whenever his heart needed a minor fix, the medical community had just invented a new stent or device to address the problem. He also survived prostate cancer.

Don is survived by his beloved wife of 66 years, Marianne Manley Davis; his son Mark and daughter-in-law Barb, of Batavia; his daughter Sally Davis and son-in-law David Hoff of Arlington, Va., his grandsons, Jonah Davis-Hoff of Arlington, Va., and Ian Davis-Hoff of Hoboken, N.J., as well as a niece, a nephew, cousins, and numerous friends. He was preceded in death by his parents, Raymond and Josephine Davis, and his brother, Jack.

A Celebration of Life will be held at 2pm, January 7, 2023 at Mt. Washington Presbyterian Church. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to the Mount Washington Presbyterian Church Hunger Fund or the Tristate Warbird Museum, Batavia, Ohio.