THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, August 8, 1996 TAG: 9608070105
SECTION: SUFFOLK SUN PAGE: 03 EDITION: FINAL
COLUMN: THUMBS UP
SOURCE: BY SHIRLEY BRINKLEY, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: SUFFOLK LENGTH: 97 lines
AS A CHILD, Catherine Davis watched with admiration as her mother cooked, washed and cared for her big family on a farm in Halifax, N.C.
The ninth in a family of 12 children, Davis had a close relationship with her mother and wanted to pattern her life after her - ``my heart string.''
Although surgery at an early age altered Davis' hope of bearing children, she has experienced motherhood in ways few women have and has influenced the lives of more than 60 children.
``I don't grieve about not having children of my own,'' she said. ``I've had so many.''
Through Suffolk Social Services, Davis and her husband, Marvin, adopted two sons and a daughter and opened their home to many foster children over the years. Three brothers, who were welcomed into the family at ages 2, 3, and 6, remained with Davis until they were grown.
Although the last child left her home when Davis was 67, her maternal instincts prepared her for a new and slightly different role. Today, Davis, 79, is known as the ``church mother'' of the New Calvary Baptist Church on North Sixth Street.
A church mother assumes the role of a mediator if there are disagreements among church members, Davis said.
``I try to help things go smoothly,'' she said. ``I talk with someone one-on-one, perhaps have lunch out somewhere so we can talk without getting angry.''
On June 23, the church honored Davis with an appreciation service for her years of dedication to the congregation. Davis, who recently retired as Sunday school superintendent after 22 years, loves to sing and will continue serving as a senior choir member.
Enjoying good health and accustomed to a busy schedule, Davis is now attending Paul D. Camp Community College for a computer class. She hopes to write a book about her life.
``This is my time,'' Davis said, ``I want to be able to write about my experiences in life to leave for my children with the hope they will appreciate what they're doing now compared to what I had to go through.''
Davis' father was a sharecropper. As a youngster growing up on a farm, Davis and her siblings were unable to attend school until the crops had been harvested.
``It was a way of life,'' she said. ``We walked to school for miles in the cold and wet weather. By the time the pot-bellied stove in the school had warmed us, it was time to go home.''
When she was 12, Davis' father died, and her mother was unable to manage the farm alone. Her mother was hired as a live-in domestic helper, and Davis was sent to live with an older sister in Suffolk.
``I saw my mother once a month for only a couple of hours,'' she said.
At 13, Davis went to work at Planters, sorting peanuts for 10 hours a day, Monday through Friday, and 5 hours on Saturday. She earned less than $1 an hour.
After World War II, Davis attended the Adult School at the East End Baptist Church, where she completed the eighth grade and worked on her GED. Later, she enrolled in night classes at I.C. Norcom in Portsmouth on the advice of a retired teacher.
``I've always wanted to learn,'' she said. ``My mother told me to read, and now I'm miserable without a book.''
Wed at 20, Davis was a widow at 24. Three years later, she met Harvey Davis at the First Baptist Church-Pleasant Hill, and their marriage lasted until his death in 1974. At the time, seven youths were living in their home.
After adopting their two sons and a daughter, Davis agreed to care for foster children and voluntarily assumed the responsibility of looking after neighborhood children. The little ones called her ``Mama,'' and the older children referred to her as ``Aunt Cat.''
``In those days, there was no kindergarten, no Head Start and no day care,'' she said. ``Mothers had to leave an older child with the younger ones so they could work. I was at home, so they came and stayed with me. I fed them, and some spent the night. . . . I considered them mine. One little boy didn't understand why he had to go home.''
One day, Davis told two of her children that it was time to take a bath. When she went upstairs to bathe them, she found a third small child in the tub.
``I asked him what he was doing there,'' she said, laughing. ``He said that the other children were taking a bath, so he thought he was supposed to do the same.''
When the last foster child left her home, Davis worked at Elevare for three years, training disabled employees to package condiments and plastic table settings for commercial use.
Today, Davis said she hears from all ``her children'' and takes pride in those she was privileged to care for. Their professions range from secretaries and office managers to carpenters, nurses and members of the armed forces. One is attending medical school.
Davis' grown children are Shirley Ann Davis and Tony L. Davis, both of Suffolk, and Christopher Davis of Richmond. There are also six grandchildren.
Davis lives alone with her dog, ``Cookie,'' who, she said with a smile, ``understands'' her.
Asked when she plans to complete her education, Davis said: ``Oh, I don't know. Besides computers, I've taken history, math and English. I love to learn ILLUSTRATION: Staff photo by MICHAEL KESTNER
As a foster parent, Catherine Davis has influenced the lives of more
than 60 children. by CNB