Otis Benson 'O.B.' Davis

KENT – Otis Benson “O.B.†Davis, 85,  died at home on Oct. 26, 2009, after a brief illness.

For 35 years, O.B. was chairman of the English department at the Kent School. He graduated from the school  in 1942 and  returned there to teach in 1949. He retired from classroom teaching in 2006.  While a master at Kent, he coached varsity wrestling, football and crew.  He taught at Kent for more than 55 years.  He often said there was nothing he would rather do than teach.

During his teaching career, he wrote a number of English textbooks, most notably “Introduction to Biblical Literature,†and he lectured and wrote on topics relating to literature and education.  

O.B. married Charlotte Cohn in 1948, after graduating from Princeton University and obtaining a Master’s Degree in English at Johns Hopkins University.  

He served in combat in World War II in France, Germany and Austria as a company officer with the 63rd Combat Engineers of the 44th Infantry Division of the U.S. Army. He later served as an intelligence officer in the U.S. Naval Reserve.

O.B. was a longtime active member of Saint Andrew’s Parish in Kent, where he served as a warden and a member of the vestry. During his 60-year residence in Kent, he served on a variety of civic boards including the school board and the Zoning Board of Appeals.  

In addition, he was a president of the Kent Memorial Library Association.  

In his middle years he was a ubiquitous bicyclist in the environs of Kent. In his later years, he read to nursing home residents and hosted a monthly book group.

He is survived by his daughter, Rebecca Davis, and her husband, Bancroft Gherardi Davis, of Newtown Square, Pa.; his daughter, Alexandra DiPentima, and her husband, Anthony DiPentima, of South Kent; his son, Joshua Davis and his wife, Lisa (Heisterkamp) Davis, of Arlington, Mass.; his grandchildren, Julia Maslin Davis, Christian Chandler Davis, Augusta Leland Davis and Dashiell Benson Davis.

He was predeceased by his wife.

A funeral service will be held on Saturday, Nov. 7, at 11a.m. at Saint Andrew’s Church in Kent and followed by a reception at the Fife ‘n’ Drum in Kent.

Memorial contributions, in lieu of flowers, may be made to Saint Andrew’s Parish, the Kent Volunteer Fire Department or Kent School.

Arrangements are under the care of Hufcut Funeral Home in Dover Plains, N.Y. To send the family an online condolence, go to hufcutfuneralhome.com.