Lynda Carol Davis

Lynda was preceded in death by her parents Obie and Nellie Johnson and her husband Noel Cleland Davis Ret. Maj. USAF. Lynda was a beloved daughter, sister, wife, mother, grandmother and great grandmother. She leaves behind her children, Noelene Morton and Sean Davis; son-in-law, Steve Morton; granddaughters: Rachael, Emily, Kathryn, and Stephanie; as well as three great-grandchildren: Ruth, Elliot, Ellianna.

My mother was the strongest woman I have known. She was a military wife which comes with no accolades but many responsibilities. As my father would have to move on to the next assignment before us, she would be left behind to clean the house in order to be white glove inspected while playing single parent to two children and multiple pets. One of these moves she drove across the desert, from California to Oklahoma, in an old station wagon that had no air conditioning with two kids, two cats and at least one dog so that we could meet my father who was living in a camper until we arrived. I don’t remember if we stayed in hotels along the way but I assume we did. That must have been a crazy site to see.

She was a teacher and loved knowing that she was breathing life into other people. I believe her proudest moments of teaching came from teaching the Level 4 Lifetime/ death row inmates at Folsom State Prison. She would bring in art work and play classical music for them. She would put happy faces on their papers and even told a story of one inmate who came to her and said, “Mrs. Davis, you forgot the happy face.” She truly touched their lives. She received a reward for California State Teacher of the Year while working at Folsom.

She was a mother who loved her children and worked diligently to ensure we would grow up to succeed in whatever we chose to do in this life. She sacrificed time and energy to give us a good education and a home where we were loved. She showed us great strength and how to carry on and do hard things. She showed us how to love and how to be committed to whatever we chose to do.

She was a grandmother who dearly loved her grandchildren. I remember her telling me when I had my first child that she was scared and did not think she could love anyone as much as she loved us, but was surprised how much she could love again.

Even in her last few years, she was a light to many people in the medical profession. Everyone always commented on her smile and how happy she was. They always loved coming out to take care of her. She never gave up when it came to her therapy and doing what was required to keep going until the end.

I saw a shift in her spirit and a lightening of her heart even with the declining of her physical health. A few years ago, she asked me to take down the ten commandments from her wall and replace them with a cross that simply said “Grace” across it. She would look at it and say, “I like that better”. In the last two years, I saw her pray more than I ever saw her pray, for healing for herself and her family. She prayed for healing from generational curses and genetic diseases that are passed down. She prayed that they would end with her. She loved God and believed in Jesus. She believed and prayed frequently in the scripture, Isaiah 53:5 "By His stripes we are healed". When she got to the point that I no longer could get her in the car to go to church, we would wake up on Sundays and listen to bluegrass gospel music and later watch church on TV. We would read scriptural affirmations out loud. Then she would rest.

"But as for you, be clear headed in every situation, stay calm, cool and steady. Endure every hardship without flinching, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill the duties of your ministry." - 2 Timothy 4:5

Mama, I saw you do this. You entered each new stage of your disease with grace, staying calm and steady. You endured each change and decreasing ability without flinching. You were an evangelist to those who cared for you, as they will attest. Your smile brought so much joy to many. You truly fulfilled the duties of your ministry here on earth. Now, you are singing praises with the angels and Daddy. Can’t wait to see you again. Today, you have been healed and made whole.