Melora E. Davis

Melora E Davis, age 97, of Newark, DE passed away on Sunday, June 18, 2023 following a major stroke while sleeping and after a brief stay at Christiana Hospital.

Melora was born in Brookfield VT in 1925, daughter of the late Perley and Bernice Davis and sister to Priscilla Hall of Chestertown, MD. In Brookfield they owned and operated the store/post office. Notable about that town is the floating bridge to cross the lake that is still maintained to this day. Perley would harvest ice from the lake, store it in the barn and sell it through the summer. Bernice was the Postal employee. Electricity, brought to the town, first lit their lights on Melora’s 12th birthday celebration.

As a teen, Melora went to boarding school in Rochester, NY to be a dental hygienist. She married Millard Zeisberg (deceased). They had 5 children, raising them in Newark DE: Matthew of Newark DE, Carl of Elk Mills MD, Donna (estranged), Andy of Milford, DE and, Mark (Donna) of Elkton, MD.

In the early 1970’s she returned to school for a Masters of Library Science and promptly started her profession as a Reference Librarian in Cape May CH, NJ. Always loving to travel, she temporarily, exchanged “lives” with a Librarian in England leading to her next career.

In 1981 Melora landed a job at an American (parochial) School in London. Her decision announcement…“It is below my expertise and I’ll take a significant pay cut but, I get to live in England!” The ever present “educator” in her took over for students as she struggled to learn/operate the Audio/Video equipment and new technology thrust upon her. Oh yeah! She got 3 months off in the summer to travel: USA, Italy, Scotland, Holland, New Zealand, and several Nordic countries… to name a few! This was usually coupled with some type of paying work, generally house sitting and/or gardening.

Melora returned to Newark DE in 1996,  to what she called her “big house” and retirement. For Melora that meant getting really busy. She restructured the house for student room rental, added a badly needed kitchen and a productive garden. Ahh yes, Gardening! She enrolled in DE Masters Gardener program class of ’96 and devoted much of her life to that special community that are Master Gardeners! Secretary, Steering Committee, Ag-Day, Newark Community Days, she publicly and privately promoted any kind of gardening or plant related things including indulging in worm farming experiments. Never arrogant, yet always a clear association worn on her sleeve, she was Master Gardener of the Year 2004 given the Career Service Award 2016 and in 2021 Emeritus Master Gardener.

In 2010 she moves across town to White Chapel, quickly integrated a whole new community of friends. On the plus side, no daily maintenance on that “big house”; negatively, her personal gardening was a challenge moving from square feet to round inches. In her retirement, she worked part time, at the English Language Institute (ELI) 2005 to 2019 teaching English to incoming University of Delaware (foreign) students. She would volunteer at local soup kitchens and always managed private food exchanging. Take a meal / Give a meal to nearly every one that would visit. Formal volunteering at the New Castle County Library, would prevent the charges of late fees if she wasn’t able to finish a book timely. Reading several books a week, made her a formidable contender for Jeopardy, lacking only the blazing signaling speed necessary to win. Always righteous and, given enough time, she would get it right. Her entire life is one of conservation, thrift, reading, empathy for the human condition, travel, local biking and walking. She always met new people, easily made friends, and some in the most interesting ways. She has kept many of those connections over time. Her specifically crafted connection to each person she met, will be missed by many. Melora was magnanimous; she donated time and money to worthy causes/charities, often anonymously. Similar actions are the best way to honor her spirit.

A visitation and remembrance gathering will be held at the Newark Senior Center, 200 Whitechapel Drive, Newark, DE 19713 on Monday July 10, 2023 from 3-6 PM. The gathering is open to all friends, family and acquaintances to exchange stories, memories and, refreshments will be available.