Samuel L. McDavid

Samuel Ledbetter McDavid passed away surrounded by his wife, children and close family on Tuesday, February 28, 2017. A lifelong Birmingham resident, Mr. McDavid attended Shades Valley High School, where he became the rhythm guitarist for String and the Beans, a musical group with considerable success throughout the Southeast. Later incarnated as The Reflections, the band toured the southern states, performing covers and original material. Their original recordings of "Come Back to Me" and "Talk Don't Bother Me" received regional radio play, with the latter receiving an unauthorized cover version by another artist. The group also served as the opening act and backing band for The Tams whenever they toured the southeast.

Mr. McDavid received a BS in Commerce and Business Administration from the University of Alabama in 1970. He then pursued a career at R.P. McDavid Company, Inc., a family-run appliance and electronics distributorship, of which he eventually became Executive Vice President and co-owner with his brother Lee.

Mr. McDavid married Barbara Ann Walters of Homewood on September 2, 1972, and during the early years of their marriage served in the US Air National Guard. The couple went on to have five children and eventually moved to Mountain Brook. A former member of the Birmingham Country Club, Mr. McDavid was an avid golfer and Crimson Tide football fan. At the time of his death, he worked as a Sales Representative for AllComm Wireless, Inc.

He was preceded in death by his mother, Antoinette Brooks McDavid (June 26, 1986) and father, Robert Patton McDavid III (Oct. 6, 1999). He is survived by his wife, Barbara Walters McDavid; children, Samuel L. McDavid Jr., Katherine McDavid, Linda McDavid Merry (Michael), Sister Mary Magdalene (formerly Antoinette Brooks McDavid), and Robert Patton McDavid V (Anna); grandchild, Eva Marie Tucker; brothers, Robert Patton McDavid IV, Lee Allen McDavid (Madeline), Michael Morrow McDavid (Helen), and Scott Haas McDavid (Beth).

Mr. McDavid was a gentle soul and devoted family man who loved to cut a rug and was always the life of the party. He will be greatly missed. Eternal rest grant unto him, O Lord, and may Your Perpetual Light shine upon him.

Arrangements under the direction of Ridout's Valley Chapel, Homewood, AL.