Keen walker marks 102nd birthday
Former business owner Clive was an old-school employer
Turning 100 is old school to Clive Davis. He achieved three figures two years ago and on Sunday celebrated his 102nd birthday.
Daniel Clive Davis, known as Clive, was born on October 22, 1921, in Foxton, the youngest of nine children.
He attended 16 primary schools around Manawatu¯ due to his father’s farmhand work and didn’t attend secondary school.
When he lived in Palmerston North’s Limbrick St, Clive would bike to a farm at what is now Guy Ave. He would milk some cows, hop back on his bike and take the milk to the treatment station in Ferguson St.
He would do this before and after going to Terrace End School.
Clive was married to Anne for 55 years until her death. They had three children — Warren, Mark and Karen. Clive has seven grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren.
He lives in an apartment in Julia Wallace Retirement Village in Palmerston North.
Mark says his father has vision and hearing problems and uses a stick and a walker, but is lucid.
He still walks every day, weather permitting, and plays indoor bowls.
A great walker, he has done most of New Zealand’s great walks.
Clive applied to join the army during World War II but was deemed medically unfit. He was directed to Cloughs in Dannevirke to build Bren gun carriers for the war effort.
He became a trade-qualified blacksmith welder and after the war worked at several engineering
companies around Palmerston North, including Berry Engineering and Niven Engineering. He went into business for himself opening D Clive Davis Ltd on Tremaine Ave, doing structural steelwork around the lower North Island.
He built farm machinery and the landmark blue tower
on top of the telephone exchange in Main St, and also owned Manawatu¯ Reinforcing and River City Reinforcing in Whanganui.
Mark can remember his father shoeing horses.
The birthday afternoon tea, attended by family and friends, was held at St Peter’s Anglican Church, where Clive used to worship.
Daughter Karen Kingsbeer told her father before he cut his fruit cake he had reached a “good milestone”.
Mark said his father had always been a hunter and gatherer rather than heading straight to the supermarket for food. Clive used to shoot ducks, stalk deer and fish.
About 2pm in summer, he would tell his staff to go home to get their families and meet at Tangimoana Beach for fishing.
Mark describes his father as an old-school employer: look after your staff and they will look after you. Clive was also a member of the Masonic Lodge.