Dean Davis

Martin Dean Davis, a resident of Baton Rouge, LA passed away on Tuesday, September 29, 2020.  Dean was born on April 11, 1934 in Mitchell, SD to Dr. Martin M. “Doc” and Anna C. (Weber) Davis, DVM.  Dean graduated from Pierre High School, Pierre, SD and went on to graduate from South Dakota State University in Brookings, SD in Pharmacy.  In 1959, while living and working in St. Paul, MN, he met his one and only love, Donna Mae Turner, from Sioux Falls, SD.  They married on May 27, 1961 and spent the next 59 plus years together and raised two daughters.

Due to his entreprenurial spirit Dean owned several independent pharmacies along with creating a home health nursing agency during his long career.  Dean’s career took him and his family to Dallas, TX and finally to Baton Rouge, LA and out of the “frozen nawth” for the remainder of his life.  Dean finally retired in 1996, so that he & Donna could go motorhoming in an RV full-time along with their Miniature Schnauzers, Mazzie and Chloe, until finally coming off the road in 2017. During their years of traveling in their motorhome, Dean served at both the state and national levels for both FMCA and Holiday Ramblers RV groups attending RV rallies and visiting all 48 contiguous states, Canada & Mexico.  Both he and Donna made many wonderful and dear friends from their travels. As well, Dean was a 45-year member of Trinity Lutheran Church where he served his Lord on numerous boards and as congregational vice-president and president.

Dean was known for his great sense of humor and would have a martini at the ready for anyone that came to visit him in the RV or at home because “it’s always 5 o’clock somewhere!”  He is survived by and left to cherish his memory are his wife, Donna and their two daughters, Michelle Lynn Davis Laudermilk, lately of Leysin, Switzerland, and Kimberly Ann Davis, of Baton Rouge, LA.  He is also survived by his brother, F. Keith Davis of Shawnee Mission, KS, and two sisters and their husbands, Maureen Davis (Otto) Muecke of Mayville, ND and Betty Davis (Steve) King of Newman Grove, NE.  In addition, he is survived by sister and brothers-in-laws, Mary Turner (Mark) Doss of Casper, WY and Barry Rogich of Wilmington, DE and numerous nephews and nieces and their families spread across various parts of the country.  He is predeceased by his parents along with his sister and brother-in-law, Patsy & Merlin Fossum, mother-in-law Louise Gehring Turner, sister-in-laws, Cheryl Turner Rogich and Roberta Anderson Davis, and nephew Mark F. Davis.  In addition, dear and much-loved friends from both his church and travels will mourn his passing.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations can be made to Trinity Lutheran Church and School, 15160 South Harrell’s Ferry Road, Baton Rouge, LA. 70816.

Visitation will be held Monday, October 5, 2020 from 12:00 pm - 2:00 pm at Resthaven Gardens of Memory & Funeral Home at 11817 Jefferson Hwy, Baton Rouge, LA, followed by a Christian service at the funeral home conducted by Rev. Steve Linck, interim pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church, starting at 2:00 pm.