Trip to North Carolina - Paula Davis Visit, July 24-28, 2008

Trip to North Carolina - Paula Davis Visit, July 24-28, 2008


Tuesday, July 22
With Ai-chan at Crossroads in Bellevue. I picked up a poster listing the Pokémon characters for my Nephew Will. Young Will had created a notebook with his own drawings of the Pokémon characters - click here. I would present Young Will with the Pokémon poster upon my arrival in Charlotte...


Thursday, July 24
The drive to Sea-Tac...






This was one of the few times I've flown out of Sea-Tac not having left Bigfoot at SeaTacPark.com...

I was on a red-eye out of Sea-Tac, stopping in Detroit on the way to Charlotte...

In Detroit...



The decent into Charlotte...



Back at Sister Jan's home at Mountain Island Lake... the new Mountain Island Lake...


Brother Brian joined us for lunch...











After lunch at Mountain Island Lake I drove over to Donna Davis' home in the Raintree section of Charlotte, where her mother, Paula, was nearing the end of her Earthly struggle. Paula, my old pal Bob's mother, was my friend for many years... since 1978. All through the 80's and 90's I used to stop in at that unique lady's home in Hickory Grove and drink sweet iced tea at her table, and listen to her talk about the old days, angels, squirrels, trains, Hello Henry, and a hundred other things...

Saturday, July 26
Lunch with Christie at Birkdale Village, a little north of Charlotte. Time with Christie is always too short. After lunch I drove on to the Triangle area of North Carolina, meeting up with Carina and Jeff Reese at Carina's home in Durham. We then went to a little shindig in Raleigh...

In Raleigh, at Bob's 50th Birthday Party. Bob had no idea that I had flown in from Seattle and would be attending the bash...



Carina and Jeff...

Bob Patterson also drove up from Charlotte...




Sunday, July 27
I drove back down to Charlotte in the morning. Poor Donna. Donna's fiancé, Doug, had died suddenly 4 days earlier, as her mother laid upon her deathbed. Through it all, Donna somehow remained composed and organized.

Back in Charlotte by early afternoon, I stayed at Donna's house with Paula and a caregiver while Donna, Susan, Tim Young, and others attended Doug's funeral. By the time Donna and the others returned to Donna's home, the end seemed near for Paula. I said what I felt would be my last goodbye to a dear old friend and drove across Charlotte back to Mountain Island Lake...

Back at Mountain Island Lake. Randy dropped by for a visit...

While sitting on the deck at Mountain Island Lake with Sister Jan, Matt, and Randy, I received a call from Donna that Paula had passed away. Paula died about 2 hours after I said goodbye. Donna buried her fiancé and lost her mother on the same day.


Paula's Obituary:

Paula Matthews Davis 11/24/29 – 7/27/08 Paula Matthews Davis of Charlotte passed Sunday surrounded by her beloved daughter, Donna, lifelong friend Susan Mefford and wonderful caregivers, Tyna Gaston and Tomeka Oliver. She was preceded in death by her husband, Williams J. Davis. In addition to her daughter, she is survived by her two sons, William J. Davis, II and his children Michelle and Steven of Richmond, VA and Bob Davis of Raleigh, NC. Paula left her nursing career early to raise her children. She was deeply spiritual and believed that all things had meaning and lessons to teach us. There was a touch of humanity in all that Paula did, thought and taught. Never was anything to be done without concern for others. A phenomenal story teller, we all delighted in her stories, living life on the cheap during the depression, why our servicemen need our support during war and how to save money for a rainy day. The practicality of this woman, her love of God, and His love for her, were all lessons not to be forgotten. As she will not be forgotten. Heritage Funeral Services in Indian Trail are handling arrangements. A private funeral for immediate family and close friends will be held at a later date.


Monday, July 28 Leaving Mountain Island Lake... back to Seattle...


After the coffee shop I stepped into a Harris-Teeter grocery store to pickup a couple of jars of Duke's Mayonnaise and Texas Pete to take back to Seattle, and at that place we really did say farewell...

The ascent out of Charlotte... looking back at the airport, and then the downtown...

Brief layover at Minneapolis - St. Paul...

Over the Great Plains, the Rocky Mountains, the Columbia basin, the Cascade Mountains, to Puget Sound...





I've flown across the country dozens of times but I never grow tired of watching the country below unfold from the window of a jet...







Sea-Tac... with Mount Rainier in the background...

Bigfoot was just where I left her...