Milt E. Davis
Milt was born to C.I. and Dorotha Davis, January 31, 1939 in a small house on Fresno Street in Lindsay, CA. He passed away on Friday, June 21, 2019 at 80 years old.
When Milt was still very young he moved with his family to a farm near Springville where he attended The Little Orange School for the first grade. The family then made the move to Porterville where he went to Doyle Colony School, Bartlett Junior High School, Porterville Union High School and Porterville Junior College. He and several of his friends joined the United States Army Reserves for six months active duty, where he served at Fort Ord, CA and Fort Lewis, WA.
Not long after returning to Porterville, Linda Blackburn entered his life. She absolutely mesmerized him. So he courted her, proposed to her and they became man and wife on February 11, 1961. There were some that said their marriage would never last, yet they remained together for over 58 years. They raised two sons, Bradley Sean and Kent Andrew.
He began his career in the grocery business and after nearly 10 years, he began to bum out. Linda urged him to go to college, get his degree and do something he enjoyed. Along with a few other awards, he got his diploma in 1972 and soon they were on their way to Arizona where he had taken a position with The Dune Company, an Ag support/supply business. For the next eight years Milt worked the Welltonmohawk Valley, the Dome Valley and the Yuma Valley as an Ag Consultant and a Pest Control Advisor. During their time in Arizona, the family made many close friends. Milt coached Little League and was the Wellton-mohawk Valley 4H lamb leader. One of his lamb leader highlights was when both of his sons won Grand Champion market lamb, Brad in FFA and Kent in 4H. Kent went on to win overall top lamb.
Milt brought his family back to Porterville in 1980 where he resumed his career in agriculture with Leffingwell Ag Sales. Kent kept Linda and Milt busy for the next five years keeping up with his athletic prowess at Porterville High School and at Porterville College. His grandsons, Lucas Davis and D. J. Davis, have been the light of their lives the last few years. Milt spent a lot of time with both of them. Man Alive, a Men’s Christian conference was formed by Milt, Brad, Dennis Townsend, Steve Hopper and Dave Hawkins among others in 2009. The 10th Annual Man Alive Conference was held March 16, 2019.
Milt was a bit of an adrenaline junkie. He's been skydiving, bungee jumping and (most recently) he jumped off the 855 feet high Stratosphere in Las Vegas, NV. In his younger days he rode bull sand “green-broke” wild mustangs brought from the desert.
There have been a few of his loved ones that beat him to heaven, the lady he was wildly in love with for nearly 60 years (his wife), Linda; his beloved son, Brad; his mom and step dad, Dorotha and Spike Ruff; his dad and stepmother, C. I. and Bernice Davis; the sister he cherished, Betty Plett; his in-laws, Joe and Rea Blackburn; and his best friends over the years--tiny Hill, Bob Hill, Marty Sipe, and Larry Wisby. The ones he beat to heaven are his son Kent; the one he loves most, Kent’s wife, Melinda (the rock of the family); grandsons, Lucas Davis and D. J. Davis, Nate Bodoh; Granddaughter, Tamara Williams; and her children, Zachary and Harley; his brother and sister-in-law Don and Trudi Davis; his brother and sister-in-law, Charlie and Carol Davis; sisters-in-law, Billie Awbrey and Kaye De La Cruz and her husband Bob; step-sisters, Joy Scanlon, Jean Tucker and Janet Rhoades and several special nieces and nephews.
A viewing will be held at Myers Chapel in Porterville, CA on Thursday, June 27, 2019 from 4:00PM to 7:00 PM. A Service will be held at the First Congregational Church in Porterville, CA on Friday, June 28, 2019 at 11:00 AM. Interment will be private. The family suggestion for service attire is resort casual. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in his honor, to Lofty Oaks (Remembrance Memorial Tree Planting Program) at www.loftyoaks.com.
To sign the family guest book or send condolences please go to www.myersfuneral.com. Myers Funeral Service & Crematory in Porterville is in charge of arrangements.