Barbara V. Davis

May 8, 1938 - January 1, 2024 Longtime Los Angeles resident Barbara V. Davis passed away peacefully on January 1 after struggling for more than a year with deteriorating health.
Barbara was born into an Eastern European Jewish immigrant family living in a crowded apartment in the Lower East Side of Manhattan. The younger daughter of her hard-working parents, Evelyn and Harry Vinnick, she had many stories about growing up in that multicultural neighborhood: her favorite foods like the cheese sandwiches from her Dad's shop, her Mom's challenging cooking, family gatherings, kind neighbors, and the wonders of exploring her grandmother's glamorous hat shop.
Barbara attended Hunter College, where she was yearbook editor and student council member as well as participating in other activities, receiving her BA in philosophy in 1959. During a post-graduation Mexican adventure, Barb got very ill and came to Los Angeles to recuperate and live with her sister, Gerry Gold. L.A. became her home for the rest of her life – although she always reminded friends and family that she was a New Yorker.
Barbara built a successful career as a personnel and human resources professional, working for L.A. County, LAUSD, Cedars-Sinai (where she was Director of HR and Labor Relations), and other organizations. She was much loved and admired by her coworkers, who were drawn to her keen intelligence, sharp wit and warm personality.
Along the way, Barbara also started a family, or more precisely, joined one. She married the late Hendryx E. "Gene" Davis Jr. in 1968 and became stepmother to his three children, Cassandra, Leslie and Rick. Her loving heart and kind guidance helped these kids from a once-broken home find their way, and she remained an important part of their lives even after she and their father divorced.
Barb loved the arts, good food, reading, traveling and cats. A regular devotee of concerts, plays, movies and museums, she could be found enjoying productions at the various Music Center venues, Pasadena Playhouse and elsewhere. During her travels, she visited Europe, Asia, Mexico, Alaska and other locales. Her holiday and birthday celebrations were notorious for having much more food prepared than was needed, despite the entreaties of her loved ones not to overdo it. At Barb's lovely hillside idyll in Silverlake, she had a parade of beloved cats, stray and otherwise, including KC (Kitty Cat) and NC (Neighborhood Cat).
She loved good conversation and cracking wise too. She would express her disgust with hypocritical politicians, offer a critique of a play, concert or film she had just seen, share the latest news of a friend or family member, or relate some cute kitty or doggie story--and lent a listening ear for others to share the same. Later in life, Barb took up writing and penned hundreds of pages of memoir.
Barbara was predeceased by her parents, Evelyn and Harry Vinnick, and her sister, Geraldine "Gerry" Gold. She is survived by her stepdaughters, Cassandra Davis-Cheyney (Tom Cheyney) of Altadena and Leslie T. Davis of San Juan Capistrano, her stepson, Hendryx E. "Rick" Davis III (Paula Abbey) of Peoria, AZ; her three step-grandchildren, Hilary Key (Scott Key) of Orcutt, Alexandra Sandecki (Steve Sandecki) of San Luis Obispo, and Brenna C. Cheyney of Los Angeles; and five step-great-grandchildren.
A Celebration of Life will be held at Mt. Sinai Memorial Park in the near future. For timing updates, email Cass at bvdavis38@gmail.com. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to the ACLU and ASPCA.