Shirley Peterson Davis

Mrs. Shirley Peterson Davis, age 97, of Hawkinsville, Georgia, died peacefully on Saturday, March 18, 2023 at her residence in Pulaski County.  Celebration of Life services will be announced at a later date.

Shirley Dale Peterson Davis was born in Chicago, Illinois, April 16, 1925 to Harry and Violet Peterson. She was the youngest of 4 children with an older sister June and two older brothers, Harry and Jerome Peterson. Her father tragically died in a swimming accident when Shirley was only 8 years old.  She grew up in South Chicago in the communities of Harvey and Roseland and attended Thornton High School where she excelled in academics and theater and was a member of the National Honor Society.  She applied and was accepted to the prestigious University of Chicago but in the midst of WWII, she decided to become a registered nurse and pursued her professional training at the nearby Roseland Community Hospital Nursing School from which she was graduated in 1947.

While attending Nursing School, she met her future husband, Howard Ryerson Davis, Jr., who was serving in the Navy at the time.  They were married December 23, 1946 after Howard had been discharged from the Navy.

Howard joined the Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing company known as 3M as a salesman and the newlyweds moved to Kalamazoo, Michigan in Western Michigan where Shirley accepted a nursing position at the Bronson Methodist Hospital in Kalamazoo.  She continued working as a nurse until the birth of their first child, Howard Jr., in 1950.  Shirley and Howard moved to the Dutch community of Holland, Michigan where they built their first dream house in Waukazoo Woods known to locals as the “glass house” because of the large, Mid-Century modern picture windows which dominated the house and provided commanding views of the nature outside, allowing Shirley to keep a sharp eye on her children playing outdoors in the woods.

Over the next decade, Shirley and Howard brought home to Waukazoo Woods, three sons and two daughters, Howard, David, Gregory, Cynthia and Kristina, all born at Bronson Hospital in Kalamazoo.  During those early years in Holland, Shirley was a stay-at-home mother and homemaker shuttling her growing family to softball and swimming practice, scout meetings, church and Bible school as well as violin and piano music lessons while laying down the law at home while her husband was on the road during the week becoming one of 3M’s top producing salesmen.

Pictures from the era suggest that the Davis family’s years in Holland, Michigan pretty much resembled a “Leave it to Beaver” sit-com lifestyle with weeklong family vacations in the summers, children gathered around the dining room table for every meal and regular family outings to the beach and the nearby parks and campgrounds.

In 1965, the 3M company asked Howard to help open their regional office in Atlanta, Georgia and the family moved to a new Northside suburb of Atlanta - the growing community of Sandy Springs/Dunwoody.  It was there, with the children all in school, Shirley decided to return to her career as a nurse, she initially worked at Kennestone Hospital in nearby Marietta.  But in 1970, when Northside Hospital in Sandy Springs opened its doors a few miles from the Davis home Shirley was one of the first nurses hired.  As a brand-new hospital, Northside was also very much a pioneering hospital.  In 1970, it was normal for only medical doctors to start and IVs but Northside pioneered the idea of training a small team of nurses to deliver all IV therapy and Shirley was one of the first two hired.  Eager for additional responsibility and to find innovative ways to improve patient outcomes, Shirley was soon put in charge of infection management for the hospital and soon thereafter she was appointed to  perform Utilization Review to determine how the hospital might achieve better outcomes for patients.

This led to the Hospital Administrator asking Shirley to create a whole new department at Northside solely focused on addressing a variety of patient issues and concerns and appropriately called the Patient Concern Department.  During her tenure her department provided assistance and representatives to families in the Emergency Room and she began the first hospital-based Home Health Service in the State of Georgia, provided critical care nursing and IV therapy to patients in their homes and began an Apnea monitoring and a Hospice program.  Shirley led this groundbreaking Patient Concerns Department until 1983.

And while Shirley was busy creating and managing an important new department at Northside, with her children pursuing their own careers, she decided to pursue the college degree she postponed during World War II when she attended nursing school instead.   She enrolled at Oglethorpe University and took classes at night and on the weekends, she eventually received her college degree over 40 years after graduating from high school.

After retiring from Northside Hospital, Shirley and Howard moved to Hilton Head where they enjoyed being active in the Providence Presbyterian Church and biking and walking Ginger, their gentle and much beloved pit bull Shirley always insisted should be referred to as a Stratfordshire Terrier.  They also enjoyed playing host to the frequent visits of their children and grandchildren. But once again, Shirley saw a problem and also envisioned a solution.  She recognized that the service industry in Hilton Head had attracted a large number of recent immigrant employees, many with very limited English language ability and no real opportunity to improve their English on Hilton Head.  So, Shirley went to her pastor and parishioners at the Providence Presbyterian Church and offered to create an English as a Second Language (ESL) program at the church.  She served as the Director for over 10 years and taught nearly a thousand workers useful language skills.   For years there was literally no place Shirley could go in Hilton Head, where she wasn’t enthusiastically greeted by someone who had studied with Shirley and was eager to show off their rapidly improving English language skills.  Shirley always got such great pleasure in seeing her former students and watching them succeed.

When she wasn’t making the world a better place, Shirley and Howard enjoyed visiting the world learning more other people’s culture and customs.  They were always eager to go somewhere new.  They took full advantage of their son David’s overseas service in the Army in Germany and Korea to visit him and then travel on their own visiting Sweden, Germany, Austria, Denmark, Great Britain, Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands and France and later, visiting Korea, Japan, Hong Kong, Singapore and Thailand.

Shirley Peterson Davis led a life of selfless service and problem solving.  She touched thousands of lives and made the communities she served a far better place in which to live and work.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Howard Ryerson Davis, Jr.; parents, Harry and Violet Peterson; so Gregory Karl Davis; Brothers, Harry Peterson, Jerome Peterson, Dennis O’Hyrn; and sister June Peterson Goebel.

Those left to forever cherish her memory include: her sons, Howard Ryerson Davis, III and David William Davis and his wife Donna Davis;  her daughters Cynthia Davis Warren and husband William Warren; Kristina Davis Partin and her husband Harold Partin; her grandchildren: Harold A. Partin, III and his wife Pui;  Stephen Partin and his wife Ivey; Rebecca A. Dunbar and her husband Dylan; Jennifer Caccavale and her husband Sam; William R. Warren and his wife Courtney; and Joseph David Warren and Dora Mae Davis

Clark Funeral Home has the privilege of being entrusted with arrangements.

Please view or sign the online register at www.clarkfuneralhawkinsville.com