John Davis was born and raised in Berkeley Ca and landed in Normandy after D-Day on July 28 1944. A twenty-four year old ordinance officer responsible for moving trucks and tanks across the channel he met the 15 –year old Jeannette in the village of Granville near Lisieux.
This older brother, younger sister relationship continued via snail mail in English and French until 5 years later when John came to France and proposed.
I was privileged to welcome John at my apartment when Hilary Kaiser discussed her book Voices of World War IIwhere John and Jeannette are prominently featured. A spry 93 he took two buses to reach me and then climbed the 2 flights of stairs where he was received with great warmth and appreciation by my guests. When he accepted a second glass of red wine I knew that he was my kind of guy.
The annual reunion of the Veterans of Foreign Wars was coming up and after listening to my CD John invited me to perform. We met at his maison de retrait in Montrouge to get better acquainted and discuss the event.
When I arrived at his apartment he was reminiscing with pal Ed Clark from Hoboken, a genial Irishman who had known Frank Sinatra, his father Marty and mother Dolly, a powerhouse in local Democratic politics. We traded Sinatra stories and after Ed took off we headed off to the dining room for lunch.
A large sunlit room with floor to ceiling windows and sliding glass doors leading to a lovely garden it is where lunch is served daily. Although you must be 80+ to live here these retirees were friendly, fun and well dressed, including one lady sporting a Chanel jacket.
Our conversation ranged from his great-grandfather who arrived in San Francisco from County Cork in the time of the Gold Rush where he made a fortune, his Portuguese-Jewish forbears and his life in France with Jeannette.
I look forward to many more lunches and talks with my new friend.
In 2012 John suffered a stroke but with the loving care of his daughter, Laura, he is on the mend, physically weakened, but mentally alert. Our visit was good for both of us, and during this holiday season (2015) was at reminder of the pleasure of sharing time with our older friends. Visit someone you know today or visit a retirement home and make a new friend.
UPDATE
John has moved to a assitant living facility in Compiegne-If you would like to send him best wishes please email me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
