Honoring Marion Ohio Veterans

Jack H. Davis grew up in LaRue, Ohio, and was a graduate of the LaRue High School class of 1946. Jack says that his class was made up of 14 boys and 14 girls. 14 class members still live and are all in their 90s. Jack said he has made most of his class reunions, even returning when he was living in Arizona.

Jack, or Herb to some of his friends know him, was a member of the LaRue Volunteer Fire Department when he was as young as ten years old. He remembers as a boy he was in the Boy Scouts and would attend camp at Camp Owens, which was located south of Marion. He said that they had real rifles from WWI and would drill with them.

Jack H. Davis enlisted in the United States Navy in 1946 with friends he knew from Marion Catholic High School; Pat Gilmore, Bill Swearingen, Bob Rizor, and Harold Kisling. He attended basic training at Great Lakes Naval Station. He was with class 191. He then went to Hospital Corpsman training at Bainbridge, Maryland. After training he was assigned to the Navy Hospital in Samson, New York. When that post was closed he was assigned to the North Island Naval Hospital in San Diego, California.

While at Terminal Island Naval Hospital Davis played football. He played teams from Delmare Marines, and Camp Pendelton. He remembers playing against graduates from Annapolis who played Navy Football; Don Whitmire, a two-time All-American Buick Coppedge, Jim Perry who would later play for the 49ers and Bob Alexander from Columbia.

At North Island some of his duties included going with the fire department to standby during the carrier landing practices. He also would pull duty on the squad for emergency calls. The duty required a doctor and a hospital corpsman to standby for emergency calls.

While Davis was assigned to Terminal Island, San Pedro, Californian. Davis was assigned to work as a corpsman at the dispensary. Here he said he was lucky to spend his down time playing football and basketball. He proudly displays the team photo in his home. Davis remembers his father writing to him daily when he was away in the Navy.

While in the Navy Davis attained the rank of Navy Hospital Corpsman 2nd Class. He was honorably discharged in 1948. He then joined the Army Reserves when he returned to Ohio. In the Army Reserves he worked as a Company Clerk from 1949 to 1957. Here he attained the rank of Sergeant. He said he served in the unit in Kenton, Ohio with Bob Lingo, son of Walter Lingo. Walter Lingo later was commissioned a Lt. and became the Company Commander.

Davis would continue to play football. For a time he played for the Angel Football team in 1948. The team was coached by Marty Lewis. While with the Marion Angels he remembers playing with Max Roseberry, later to become a Marion Police officer. They traveled as far as Cincinnati and many of the small communities around Marion. From 1949-1951 Davis played football at Ohio Northern University while he attended college. He said in those days you played most all positions, and all played both offense and defense.

In May of 1957 Davis got a job on the Marion Fire Department. At that time Chief Owen A. Sifritt would not allow members to be in the reserves of the military. It was at this time that Davis received his Honorable discharge from the United States Army. While at the Marion Fire Department, Jack Davis would move through the ranks. In March of 1972 he earned the promotion to Assistant Chief. From 1979 to 1981, he would have the honor of serving as Fire Chief of the Marion Fire Department. Those who served under him at the fire department talked of his toughness as a firefighter and strict fairness as an officer. They remember him going into smoky fires and having to be helped to the outside after the effects of the toxic smoke.

While at the fire department he was well known in the community as he also worked at Krogers as a produce man. He retired and moved to Arizona where he wished to work until he turned 80. He was months short of this goal when, as a salesman, he was forced to retire after he was diagnosed with cancer. He was blessed to beat cancer and other frustrating ailments and then returned home to Marion, Ohio.

He looks forward to attending his class reunion each year and has breakfasts with other retirees from the Marion Fire Department. He is remembered by fellow firefighters as a real smoke-eater. He is said to be of the toughest firemen they have known and a respected Chief of the department.

He was very proud to show me the World War Two Victory Medal that he was honored to receive while he was in the Navy. He also proudly showed me the photos of his Terminal Island football team, Ohio Northern football team, International Association of Fire Fighters Local 379 Retirement plaque, a photo of his father and other family photos when I visited him.

Sadly Jack H. Davis passed away in December of 2019.