Mrs. Wilmetta Beulah Davis

Wilmetta B. Davis passed away peacefully at home in Casitas Springs on September 6, 2010 at the age of 87. Born Wilmetta Louise Hicks, on August 21, 1923, in Sand Springs Oklahoma, Wilmetta was the youngest of nine children (all now deceased) born to parents Caroline Amelia Rigg (Illinois) and Arthur Ora Hicks (Kansas). Wilmetta moved to California with her family in 1924, living in Costa Mesa, Newport Beach and El Sereno before moving to El Monte in 1932 where she attended Columbia Grammar School and graduated from El Monte Union High School. Wilmetta was first married to James Leon LaChaine (Montana) in January 1941, this union bringing three children, James, Dennis and Carolyn LaChaine, yet ending in divorce. James was born just days before the bombing of Pearl Harbor. She then married Virgil James Davis (Iowa) in August 1949, this union bringing three more children, Susan, Virgil (Arthur) and Alan Davis. Wilmetta and her growing family moved to Oxnard in 1953, then to Casitas Springs in 1955 to their “mini farm� where they raised all the usual animals and crops, including thousands of chickens (for eggs), dozens of fruit trees (mostly apples), many horses, goats, calves, pigs, rabbits, ducks, turkeys, dogs and cats, to name a few. Her old 1946 Cadillac was the neighborhood “Taxi� for many of the neighborhood kids’ doctor appointments, etc. as most of the mothers in the early days didn’t drive and/or were stay-at-home-moms. It’s surprising how many mothers with their kids could be packed into that car at fair-time to watch the parade and enter the fairgrounds, as she got a free pass when the boys had their goats entered in the fair. Wilmetta served at the neighborhood voting precinct for many years, continuing after retirement. She served at Little House in Ojai after retirement, assisting the elderly and limited income people with their income tax forms. She also served on the recreation committee board for the local community center. She was an avid quilter, giving one of her hand made quilts to each of her six children and twelve grandchildren. Wilmetta was a member of the Ojai Valley Community Church, the Ojai Valley Moose Lodge and Women of the Moose as well as the Quilters at Little House. Wilmetta remained a stay-at-home mom until the youngest (Alan) was eleven years old. She first worked in the Casitas Springs Post Office 2-3 years and briefly for the Woolworth’s Store in Ventura before signing on with Allstate Insurance Company, from where she retired as a Claims Adjuster in 1985. Virgil & Wilmetta enjoyed the fruits of retirement together until Virgil died from cancer in 1999, five months short of their 50th anniversary. They especially enjoyed their trips to the redwoods in northern California, the Indian Reservations in Arizona and the small casinos in the little towns across Nevada. During the past eleven years she has enjoyed increasingly shorter jaunts away from home, including several stops at the Chumash casino in Santa Ynez, where she enjoyed playing the nickel slots. More recently she enjoyed the visits from family and friends, especially her children, grandchildren, great grandchildren, nieces and nephews. Wilmetta was preceded in death by her parents and eight siblings, her husband Virgil, son James and her granddaughter Laura Wojciechowski (Eric) Ortega. She is survived by her children Dennis (Maree) LaChaine, Carolyn (Leroy) Wojciechowski, Susan Ferguson, Virgil “Art� Davis and Alan Davis, 12 grandchildren and 18 great-grandchildren as well as numerous cousins, nieces, nephews and friends. Visitation for Wilmetta will be held on Friday, September 10 at Santa Clara Mortuary, 2370 North H Street, Oxnard, from 4:00 to 8:00 p.m. A Funeral Service in celebration of her life will be held at Ojai Valley Community Church, 907 El Centro Street, Ojai, at 11:00am Saturday, September 11, followed by a graveside service at Ivy Lawn Memorial Park, 5400 Valentine Road, Ventura.