Gentle Lee "Gent" Davis

1937 - 2022

Gentle 'Gent' Lee Davis
January 13, 1937 - February 13, 2022
Stockton, California - Gentle (General) Lee Davis, known to most as "Gent," passed away peacefully at Saint Joseph's Hospital on February 13, 2022. Gent was 85 years old.
He was born on January 13, 1937 in Benton, Louisiana, to LeRoy and Armanda Davis. In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by two brothers, Spence Davis of Vallejo and a younger brother who died as a child in Louisiana. Gent is survived by his wife of 49 years, Dorrine.
Gent's parents relocated from Louisiana to Vallejo, CA when Gent was in elementary school. He graduated from Vallejo High School in 1955, continuing his education at Vallejo Junior College (currently Solano Community College), transferring to Gonzaga University in Spokane, WA and eventually receiving a Bachelor of Science Degree from Sacramento State College. In 1977, he earned a Master of Arts Degree in Education from the University of the Pacific in Stockton.
Gent served in the US Navy and played basketball for the All-Navy Team when he was stationed at Pearl Harbor. His lifelong love for basketball continued as he competed in the Sacramento Metro Leagues and Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) in Stockton and Sacramento for more than a decade. In later years, he participated in statewide Police, Department of Corrections and Senior Olympic Games.
Gent's 34-year professional career began as a Group Supervisor for the Department of the Youth Authority in Sacramento. Later he promoted to Youth Counselor, Teacher and Principal in the Stockton facilities. He transferred to the Department of Corrections as an Educational Administrator at Soledad State Prison and Deuel Vocational Institution in Tracy, CA. In 1997, Gent retired as an Associate Warden at San Quentin State Prison.
Gent was an accomplished general aviation pilot holding both private and commercial licenses.
For fifty years he lived in the same Stockton (Morada Area) where he was a kind and compassionate neighbor. Gent's love of animals was legendary. Throughout his life, he and Dorrine enjoyed and maintained a sizable menagerie of rescued, injured and/or abused animals.
Gent's Vallejo roots motivated him to create an honored and greatly attended tradition of monthly luncheons called the "Gathering of the Vallejoans," which were held at various restaurants throughout Northern California for more than 25 years.
To honor Gent's memory, a Celebration of Life will be held in early summer. In his name, donations may be made to the Animal Protection League at P. O. Box 691912, Stockton, CA 95269-1912.