Deborah D. Davis

Deborah was born August 9, 1968, in Kansas City, Missouri, and passed away January 7, 2015. She is the youngest daughter of Darold J. Davis and Judy K (Shepard) Davis. Deborah, a 1986 graduate of Park Hill High School, Kansas City, MO, earned her BA degree from Pepperdine University, Malibu, CA, in 1992, and her Juris Doctor Degree from Pepperdine University School of Law in 1995. While in school, she worked as Personal Assistant to actor Larry Hagman and also was a member of the US Embassy team in London serving the then President George HW Bush. Deborah was licensed to practice law in Colorado where she worked for the law firm of Balcomb & Green in Glenwood Springs; in Missouri where she had her own law practice in Plattsburg; and in New York, Deborah worked for the Center for Court Innovation in New York City helping inner city families and she is a survivor of the 9/11 attacks. While working in the United Kingdom, she fulfilled a dream of working for Amnesty International, was Assoc. Solicitor with Paul Robinson Solicitors and with Swift Mortgage Co. Deborah also earned her Master's Degree in Archaeology from The University of Leicester, Leicester, United Kingdom, 2011. Deborah was enrolled to start classes at Florida Gulf Coast University starting this week to learn forensic anthropology. From serving others as a human right's attorney to following her passion for Caribbean archaeology, she packed so many amazing experiences into her too short 46 years.

As a young child, Deborah loved playing with Fisher-Price Little People which traveled to many unknown lands in her mind. In life, Deborah loved to travel and did so extensively, Madrid, Budapest, Milan, Paris, London, Vienna, Florence, Prague, Venice, Moscow, the British Virgin Islands (one of her favorite places) and Tanzania, Africa to name a few. At one point, Deb had to have more pages put into her passport, just to accommodate her travels. Family was very important to Deborah and she always stayed in close contact no matter where in the world she was visiting. Deborah had a zest for living life to the fullest. When she was struck down with Cobb Syndrome and spinal tumors in the winter of 2010 and spring of 2011, she never ceased to keep a good outlook on life, and was an inspiration for her family. Deborah was the only living survivor of Cobb Syndrome in the world. She amazed the doctors where ever she was being treated from North Kansas City Hospital to Mayo Clinic, to Baptist Memorial Hospital, Miami, FL.

Deborah is survived by her parents, a sister, Carolyn (Davis) Cockey, (husband Joe) and nephews Joshua, Alexander and Christopher Cockey, Sarasota, FL, a brother Darold J. Davis II, (wife Sheila) and nephew Zach Davis, niece Julia Davis, Kansas City, MO and niece Taylor Kaiser, (husband Ryan and daughter Melina of Platte City, MO. Also surviving are uncles and aunts Deane D. Shepard II, Kansas City, MO, William & Jane Davis, Holden's Beach, NC, George and Francis Davis, Manteo, NC, Linda and Sammy Savage, Jacksonville, NC, and Brenda Nelson, Leland, NC.

Zach wrote of his Aunt Ducky on Facebook, "Today we lost one of the most selfless people I have met. My aunt Deborah. She would do anything for anyone and anything she had was yours if you needed it, I mean anything. She took me to the Bronx for a Yankees game and she even flew from England just for my birth; who does that? She never acted her age and I loved that about her. So many good times. Love you Aunt Ducky."

Funeral services will be held at 1:00 p.m. on Friday, January 16, 2015 at Penwell-Gabel Southwest Chapel, 3700 SW Wanamaker Road. Burial will follow in the Carbondale Cemetery. The family will receive friends at the funeral home on Thursday evening from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the Deborah Davis Memorial Fund, c/o Penwell-Gabel Southwest Chapel.

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