By admin 
Nearly four decades after his death, a World War II veteran will receive military honors and a final resting place in Paso Robles.
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Burton Irwin Davis, who served as a corporal in the U.S. Army Air Forces, died in 1987, and his cremated remains were discovered in a hope chest by his wife’s caregiver, who brought them to American Legion Post 50.
Davis served as a draftsman in the military, and his record shows 1 year, 9 months and 15 days of foreign service during the height of World War II, before he returned home to California, graduated from college and raised a family.
On Friday, his remains will be interred at Paso Robles District Cemetery following a motorcade and ceremony.
A life beyond the uniform
Davis was 20 when he enlisted in the Army in October 1942 and entered active duty the following month. His service spanned much of the United States’ involvement in World War II, ending in January 1946.
The record places Davis in Greenland, associated with Bluie West One at Narsarsuaq. During the war, the U.S. airfield was a North Atlantic staging point for aircraft, personnel and supplies moving from North America toward the European theater.
His listed awards include the Good Conduct Medal, American Theater Campaign Ribbon, three overseas service bars, World War II Victory Ribbon and carbine qualification.
The three overseas bars are consistent with Davis’ nearly 21 months abroad, with each bar representing six months of overseas service. The American Theater ribbon recognized service in the North American theater, which included Greenland.
After the war, Davis earned a bachelor’s degree with honors in metallurgical engineering and a master’s degree in mining and metallurgy from the University of Illinois.
A 1985 U.S. patent lists Burton I. Davis of Camarillo as one of three inventors of a device for preparing thin specimens for microscopy.
Davis and his wife, Doris, raised twin daughters, Becki Sue and Julie Ann, in Camarillo. A 1964 Camarillo newspaper clipping identified “Mrs. Burton I. Davis” as a librarian at Camarillo Heights Elementary School who served on the school’s library committee.
When a family hobby became a business
The Davis family also knew the uncertainty of unemployment.
By December 1971, the nation was still feeling the effects of the 1969-70 recession. Though the recession had formally ended about a year earlier, the U.S. unemployment rate averaged 5.9% in 1971.
A Dec. 1, 1971, Camarillo newspaper article profiled several local men who were having trouble finding work and the ways their families were adapting to economic conditions at that time.
Davis, described in the article as a physicist, had been unemployed. The newspaper reported that the setback had brought the family closer as they turned a longtime hobby — making copper-enameled jewelry — into a full-time business.
Doris Davis silk-screened items, while the twin daughters helped make the jewelry. The family planned to continue the business even after Davis returned to work, the newspaper reported, as a measure of economic security.
Veteran’s remains found in hope chest
The discovery of Davis’ hope chest set in motion research that brought together those pieces of his story: a young serviceman stationed in Greenland during World War II, a college-trained engineer and inventor, a Camarillo husband and father, and a family that found a way through unemployment together.
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American Legion Post 50, its family organizations and Riders chapter, VFW Post 10965, the San Luis Obispo County Veterans Services Office, Kuehl-Nicolay Funeral Home and Paso Robles District Cemetery collaborated to identify Davis, obtain records and permits, arrange his interment and pay for the cemetery niche.
Davis’ wife’s caregiver also gave his collection of military memorabilia, including uniforms, to the post. The items are now in the safekeeping of the Camp Roberts Historical Museum.
“As veterans we want to honor every comrade and act as family because we are,” said Lydia Francis, adjutant of American Legion Post 50.
Joe Gabele, director of the post’s American Legion Riders chapter, said the groups’ work extends beyond military ceremonies.
Members assist veterans and families after a death, organize escorts and flag lines, support youth programs and collect donations for community needs.
“The American Legion has the gift of being able to honor those who served and still serve,” Gabele said. “We welcome all to see what we’re all about and enjoy some great food and camaraderie at the post every Thursday, rain or shine, between 11:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m.”
“The decision to give Burton Davis the honor he has been due for many years was an easy one,” Gabele said. “We won’t forget.”
A community tribute Friday
Davis will be laid to rest at 11 a.m. Friday in the Veterans Memorial Wall at Paso Robles District Cemetery, 45 Nacimiento Lake Drive.
The public is invited to participate in a flag line beginning at 10 a.m. at American Legion Post 50, 240 Scott St. Participants should arrive beginning at 9:30 a.m., said Joe Gabele.
A World War II-era Jeep from Estrella Warbirds Museum will carry Davis from the post to the cemetery. The motorcade, assisted by the Paso Robles Police Department and the California Highway Patrol, is scheduled to leave at 10:20 a.m. and arrive about 10:45 a.m.
The procession will travel along Commerce Way, Sherwood and Niblick roads, across Veterans Memorial Bridge, and then along Spring and 24th streets toward the cemetery.
Almond Acres School students are expected to wave flags as the procession passes along Niblick Road west of Creston Road. Flags will be placed along Veterans Memorial Bridge, and the Paso Robles Fire Department plans to display a large American flag from a ladder truck.
A second flag line is planned from the Jeep to the Veterans Memorial Wall, where Davis’ urn will be placed in a niche.
The 11 a.m. ceremony will include a Camp Roberts military honor guard, prayers, a flag-folding ritual, a three-volley salute and Taps.
A passage planned for the ceremony says: “Burton Irwin Davis, your final formation has been called. Your fellow veterans are here. You are accounted for. And you may now rest.”
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