WICHITA STATE UNIVERSITY ALUMNI MAGAZINE
Spring 2014

Powerful Presence

BY CONNIE KACHEL WHITE

Melvin DavisMelvin L. Davis '55 was born in Wichita, grew up in his childhood home on East 3rd Street, was educated at every level in Wichita schools and graduated from the University of Wichita with a bachelor's degree in business. He also worked at his family's business, the Davis Clothing Co. in downtown Wichita.

After college, he joined the U.S. Air Force and attained the rank of captain before returning to his hometown to run the family business. He soon expanded his business experience by going to work for Willard Garvey – and he expanded his family with his 1964 marriage to Barbara Lewis; together, they raised three sons. In 1974, he designed and constructed Southlake Village Apartments and continued as sole propietor until his retirement in 2002. In 2010, he was inducted as a charter member of the Wichita Apartment Industry Hall of Fame.

Through the years, his business savvy, paired with a strong commitment to education, proved to be a true community asset: He was active as a WSU Alumni Association member and board member, for example, and served on the Wichita school board for six years. In 1991, he was endorsed for re-election in a Wichita Eagle editorial: "Mel Davis is a powerful presence on the Wichita Board of Education who richly deserves re-election. No one else on the board has the combination that Mr. Davis offers: a passion for both fiscal responsibility and school reform."

Mel Davis – an avid golfer who, in 2003, sunk a hole-in-one – died Jan. 16, 2014, in Wichita.


IN MEMORIAM

Grains of Wheat

Lee R. Riley '42 went to school in a one-room schoolhouse before graduating from Lamar (Colo.) High School and then living with his sister in Wichita while going to college.

Calm in the Chaos

Ken Landwehr '04, the retired Wichita Police Department lieutenant credited with helping solve more than 600 homicides over the course of his 35-year career, was described by a fellow detective as always being "the calm in the chaos."

A Scholar's Life

Born in Russia in 1921, Cornelius John "C.J." Dyck '55 immigrated to Canada with his family when he was 5 years old.

Powerful Presence

Melvin L. Davis '55 was born in Wichita, grew up in his childhood home on East 3rd Street, was educated at every level in Wichita schools and graduated from the University of Wichita with a bachelor's degree in business.

Freedom Bird

W. Stephen Hathaway, professor emeritus of English, taught creative writing and American literature at WSU from 1974-2012.

Elite Circle

An accounting graduate of the University of Wichita who served as president of Pi Alpha Pi during his student days, Ernest L. Balay '53 proved to be a lifelong supporter and contributor to his Alma Mater.

A First Lady

Morita M. (Crymes) Bateman, retired associate professor of finance, real estate and decision sciences at Wichita State, was a first lady in multiple ways.

Proud Shocker

Allen "Al" B. Taylor '54 was a running back on the University of Wichita's Shocker football team, before graduating with a bachelor's degree in physical education and going into military service with the U.S. Army.

In Memoriam

Leaving lasting legacies are these Wichita State University alumni and friends.