Debbie Davis, one of our Mentor Moms, has been working with and serving the families of the Campbell Church and Campbell Christian School for 24 years. She has had an amazing motherhood journey, with both blessings and sorrows, and is now sharing her wisdom and experiences with the moms on Wednesdays!
Debbie was born in New York, and grew up surrounded by relatives. “My mom came from a family of nine siblings, so there were plenty of cousins. I remember always playing outdoors in good weather, and when the snows came, my sister and I and several cousins played in our basement for hours. We all have fond memories of those times of creativity and camaraderie. Oh, and the holiday dinners hosted at each other's homes were so memorable!”
Debbie spent her teen years in New Jersey. “Friends played a more important role at that time, not only because of the developmental stage of life, but also because now we lived further away from most of our relatives My aunt and uncle from Sacramento were visiting in the Summer of '69 and extended an invitation to me to come out to California. So at age 20, in the Winter of 1970, I left my childhood home and my family to stay with my aunt and uncle, secured a job at the State Capitol, and met the man I was to marry all in a matter of months.”
Their first two years of marriage were spent in Sacramento, then Placerville where they lived for 14 years before moving to the Silicon Valley. “We just celebrated our 40th wedding anniversary. Our only child is our 30-year-old daughter. She attended CCS during her elementary years here in the South Bay. She recently completed her Masters in Investor Relations at the University of San Francisco and is currently working in San Francisco's financial district.
Debbie has a personal understanding for the challenges and sorrows that often come with starting a family, especially when things don’t go as planned. “We were unable to have more children and that was hard to accept. But God had a plan. For 15 years, I was employed by CCS, working in the Extended Care Program for three years, and in the preschool as a teacher for one year, then director for 12 years. There were many, many children in my life over the years. What a blessing! Currently, I serve on the CCS School Board.”
While working at Campbell Christian School and taking care of her family, Debbie completed her Associates in Early Childhood Education at West Valley College. “I had begun on the journey of early childhood education when my daughter was very young. I felt I needed more information to raise her, and went back to college in Placerville when she was six years old and at school. I finally received my degree after about ten years of study.”
What was the best thing about being a stay-at-home mom? And being a working mom?
The first 13 years of our daughter's life, I was able to be a stay-at-home mom. I'm very grateful for that time because I was able to focus on her a little more without the added stress of an outside job. But when I went to work, it helped her become a little more responsible and I became a little more organized. The timing may have been good.
What did you do before you started working for CCS?
Prior to working in the field of child development, I had worked as a secretary, both in my home state of New Jersey as well as California, which included working for the California State Legislature for eight years.
How do you spend your days?
I've been retired for over five years. Since we retired, my husband and I have flown to France, Italy, Australia, and crossed the United States and Canada by train. It's important to remain as active as possible, so helping out at one of the local elementary schools, reading to the kindergartners through fourth graders has been on my list of volunteer activities. Serving as a Sunday Bible class teacher of three year olds and helping as a mentor mom for Mothers of Preschoolers are priorities at this time.
My husband and I stay busy right now caring for his elderly mother who lives nearby. She is 95 now and depends on us, so we see her every other day and make sure she has what she needs. It is very difficult to witness a loved one in decline, but there is a blessing in this, too, something to be learned.
Best bit of parenting advice you ever received?
My mother said to always remember "This too shall pass." She was big on understanding stages of development and she didn't even go to college to study it. She was absolutely right, and it passes too quickly. Just before our daughter was born, a dear friend wrote me a letter and said, "Just love her." I've done just that every day of my life since she was born. So when I was director of the Early Childhood Center at Campbell Christian School I would share these adages with our parents and also tell them, "Enjoy each day with your little ones because they grow up very fast." I will add that praying for them every day is essential!
