Obituary

The Paul Mortuary
Our gutsy lady, Phyllis Davies, passed on to new adventures on Sunday, September 6, 2015, just six days shy of her 86th birthday. Phyllis spent her life as an independent woman, curious, and pursuing her passions and beliefs. She grew up in the farmland area of Paris Station, New York, and lived across the street from the family country store, Lincoln Davies. Immediate and extended family were always around. She played in the corn fields, hunted woodchucks in the pastures, swam in the lakes, and excelled in school. With a degree in Social Work she moved to Mexico to help others. Eventually she married a fellow social worker and they had two children. Denise was first, Charles followed a year later. Shortly thereafter, about 1954, she made the unusual and bold choice to become a single parent. She returned to Paris Station with two very young children to begin a new life teaching high school Spanish at New Hartford High School. She made summers magical and unique by including Denise and Charles in her summer work either lifeguarding or working as a pastry chef at Covewood Lodge in the Adirondack mountains. In the mid sixties Phyllis moved with Denise and Charles to Bloomington, Indiana, to participate in a rigorous Russian language program while living in family campus housing for a year. She spent a portion of that summer visiting Russia with a group from the language program. Later, after moving back to New Hartford, she taught a Russian language class. In the summer of 1968, she decided to make her own camper out of a black and white Econoline van and traveled to Yellowstone National Park with two teenagers and two cats. In keeping with her adventurous, fearless spirit, that summer camping trip ended with a new teaching position and a new home in Carmel, California. While teaching Spanish at Carmel High School, Phyllis became involved with helping the local migrant workers. She retired from teaching in 1985, but beforehand she earned her law degree from the Monterey College of Law in 1979. In 1986 she began practicing immigration law in Salinas, CA. She continued her law practice until 2000. Squeezed into these years of teaching and practicing law, she entertained grandchildren, became an avid gardener and birder, learned to scuba dive, earned a private pilot license, translated in the courts, collected glassware, learned to video tape for the local public channel, traveled to Spain, Mexico, Cuba (three times!), Ecuador, the Galapagos Islands and immensely enjoyed the friendship of others who had similar interests. Her law practice was interrupted for a short time while she recovered from a heart attack and heart valve replacement. Upon recovery, she continued to do all the things she loved. In 2010, she was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease. While taking her memory, this disease did not take away her determination to be independent. In 2014, her new home became The Cottages of Carmel, where staff warmly took care of her and helped her retain as much of her self-sufficiency as possible and honored her desire to comfort other residents. On the morning of September 6, 2015, our mom, grandmother, and aunt, Phyllis Ann, passed on after suffering a major stroke nine days earlier. The nursing staff of the Westland House in Monterey helped us as we stayed with her night and day. We have great memories, funny stories, and a boatload of photographs. She lived an independent and adventurous life, stuffing it full of what she wanted to do and what she believed in. We always loved bragging about her and that will never stop. She was loved by many and will be missed dearly. She is survived by her son, Charles Davies of Pebble Beach CA; Daughter, Denise Zimmerer (son-in-law John) of Pacific Grove, CA; Granddaughter, Sarah Anne Morris (Brian), of Ogden, UT; Grandson, Michael John Zimmerer of Phoenix, AZ; Nephews Eric Davies (Emmy) of Baton Rouge, LA and Clifton Davies (Doris) of Newhall, CA; and niece, Gwenyth Davies (Michael), of Salinas, CA.

To honor Phyllis, please consider contributing to the Alzheimer’s Association or another charity of your choice.