Jeanne Davis
Jeanne Davis passed away peacefully on May 19, 2024. Jeanne was an avid reader, walked 3 miles every day, and loved staying active. As an icon of style to all who knew her, she will always be remembered for her big glasses, sophisticated outfits, large bracelets, and especially, her generosity.
Born Jean Stephens Kuchmyk in 1925 and raised in Toronto, Canada, the daughter of Stephen and Barbara Kuchmyk, and stepmother Mary Kuchmyk (Ukrainian immigrants), Jeanne graduated from Commercial Business College at the top of her class when the lure of California’s warmth brought her traveling across the country in a convertible to beautiful Santa Barbara. She was a true sun worshipper with the sounds of the Beach Boys always playing in the background.
Jeanne first worked at Peterson Publishing, assisting with Madame Ganna Walska’s memoirs. She lived briefly in Los Angeles during the heyday of the movie industry, and in San Francisco where she met her future husband, Morton A. Davis, in the early 1950s. Determined and hardworking, they opened laundry and dry-cleaning businesses in Oxnard and Ventura and, years later, started the All American Telephone Answering Service in Santa Barbara.
After Morton passed all too soon in 1967, Jeanne ran the business for a few more years before selling it to raise their only son, Kevin. Jeanne was a devoted mother who engaged her son in swimming, tennis, music, and the arts of every kind. Raising Kevin was Jeanne’s life’s work. After her husband’s passing, she reinvented her life with fierce determination and was hired by Coast Mortgage Company in 1969 where she worked part-time so that she could be home as much as possible with Kevin. She also earned her real estate license and became a successful real estate investor in what was, at the time, a man’s world.
In 1974, Jeanne was ready for a change and began her work at UCSB as Secretary and Principal Clerk for the Graduate School of Education under Dr. George Brown. She then moved departments to Arts & Lectures and then to the College of Letters & Science. She cherished her work with the University.
Jeanne subsequently (1982) joined the Santa Barbara School District, working at La Cumbre Jr. High with Don “Skip” Skipworth in the counselor’s office, who became a close friend of the family. Once Skip retired, she transitioned positions to work as Administrative Secretary in the Superintendent’s Office.
A proud member of the Assistance League of Santa Barbara for 30 years, Jeanne joined the start-up of the Ukulele Lulus music group. She delighted in rehearsing and performing with the Lulus throughout Santa Barbara. As a supporter of music and the arts, Jeanne volunteered her time throughout her years in many of Santa Barbara’s theater, music and arts programs, including the Granada, Arlington, Lobero, Music Academy of the West, Santa Barbara Bowl, and the Santa Barbara Film Festival. Jeanne also enrolled in continuing education courses at night dedicated to sculpting, furniture-making and refinishing, and was also a member of the Santa Barbara Sister City program.
As her son, she was my best friend and soulmate. I could not have asked for a better person to bring me into this world and I will always love her dearly.