Vernon Theodore Davis

Funeral services will be at 11:00 a.m. on Thursday, February 26, 2015 at Debo Funeral Home in Fulton. Burial with military honors will follow at 1:30 p.m. at Jacksonville Veterans Cemetery in Jacksonville, Missouri. Visitation will be from 10:00 a.m. until time of services at the funeral home.

Vernon was born June 18, 1928, in Readsville, Missouri, as an only child to Clyde and Leona Hobbs Davis and they preceded him in death. He was married to Lola White on May 11, 1948 and she also preceded him in death.

His parents owned the Readsville General Store and Vernon worked at the store when he was young. He attended Readsville School and then went to Chillicothe Business College for two years where he received his general accounting certificate. He then worked for Barnes Chevrolet as an assistant bookkeeper.

Vernon was drafted in the Army in 1952 and made a career of his military service, serving until 1972. He served during both the Korean War and Vietnam periods. He was a medical administrator who managed the military medical facilities. He was in charge of facilities in Alaska, Washington, Ohio, Kansas and Germany. While in Korea, he was a troop commander for a medical unit and had an additional duty as an aerial observer. He flew 53 missions with a pilot on the DMZ between North and South Korea to report suspicious movement of North Korea by taking aerial photographs. While serving in Vietnam, he was assigned to a medical unit in Cameron Bay. He briefed all new incoming officers and nurses entering Vietnam. He was also the troop commander of the 6th Convalescent Medical Center. As a commander, he had the privilege of hosting movie stars who came to the base to cheer up the soldiers. He hosted Jimmy Stewart and his wife, the Bob Hope Show and many others. Vernon was also stationed at headquarters in San Francisco, California where he oversaw the Armed Forces Entrance Stations for ten states where potential servicemen came to be examined for potential registry in military service.

Vernon retired from the Army in 1972 with a rank of Lieutenant Colonel. During his career he attended Infantry Officer Candidates School, Chemical Corps School and many other schools and courses. He earned a National Defense Service Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster, Army of Occupation Medal-Germany, Armed Forces Reserve Medal, Vietnam Service Medal, Vietnam Campaign Medal and Army Commendation Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster.

After retiring from the Army, he owned and operated Davis Realty in Fulton. He sold real estate in Callaway County until retiring again. During retirement, he enjoyed gardening, and volunteering in the community. He was active with the county fair and VFW. In 1995 he and a group of veterans were invited to Australia to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the WWII victory of Australia and the Pacific. He was a member of the Honor Flight group from September 2014.

Vernon was a model airplane enthusiast and he loved to play Santa Claus during the holidays for different groups and family members.

He is survived by two sons, Robert (Jolene) Davis of Montgomery City, Missouri and Allen Davis of Sacramento, California and two granddaughters, Jessica Davis of Columbia, Missouri and Carrie Lohmann of Hubert, North Carolina and her husband, Daniel, who is a Marine stationed at Camp LeJeune.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Missouri Veterans Home, #1 Veterans Drive, Mexico, Missouri 65265 or Childrens Tumor Foundation at www.ctf.org/hope