Obituaries

Joseph W. Davis, 46

Joseph W. Davis, 46, of Lancaster, passed away unexpectedly on Sunday, October 21, 2012.

He was the husband of Michele G. Green Davis, to whom he was married  for 24 years this past May 21st. Born in Lancaster, he was the son of Marianne Fischer Hamilton of Baltimore, MD and the late Marvin Hartman.

Joseph had been the co-owner of Davis BDS, with his wife, since 2004. He was also a certified  ASE auto mechanic and had a great knowledge and troubleshooting abilities when it came to cars.

His greatest passion was to help people and the building of relationships, and he always cared more about what others needed more than himself.

In addition to his wife, Michele, he is survived by his children: Alyssa Davis of Reading,PA,  Nicholas Davis of Ralston, PA, and Ivy Davis of Lancaster, and by his siblings: Tony Hartman of Ephrata, Marlene married to William Knight of Lancaster and Chad Davis of Florida.

Friends will be received on Thursday, October 25, 2012 from 2-330PM at the Charles F. Snyder Jr Funeral Home & Crematory, 3110 Lititz Pike, Lititz, PA, with the Christian Prayer Service to follow at 330PM, the Rev. Michael Culkin officiating. Private interment in St. Joseph New Catholic Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, please make contributions in Joseph’s memory to the Juvenile Diabetes Assn (JDRF), 26 Broadway , 14th Floor, New York, NY, 10004. To send an online condolence, please visit SnyderFuneralHome.com. Charles F. Snyder Jr Funeral Home & Crematory 560-5100

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Condolences to the Family

I only knew Joe for a little while but he was the most giving and sincere person I have met in a long time.  I was looking forward to being mentored by Joe in his business.  He gave so much of himself all the time.  I am thankful to have met and gotten to know Joe.  My sincere sympathies go to his wife, Michelle, and all other family members, friends and fellow business partners.

Janie Markert

My condolences to the Davis family. I graduated with Joe from PM. Whenever we did talked Joe was soft spoken, kind and caring person. God bless everyone.

Lori McCord

I’M SO SORRY TO HEAR OF JOE’S PASSING. JOE AND I GO BACK TO SCHOOL. HE HAS ALWAYS BEEN A WONDERFUL GUY. ALWAYS CARING OF PEOPLE’S FEELINGS. WE HAD A LOT OF GREAT TIMES. WE ACTUALLY FOUND EACH OTHER ON FACEBOOK, AND HAVE BEEN COMMUNICATING OVER SOME TIME NOW.

I KNOW JOE IS LOOKING DOWN ON ALL OF US AND JUST SAYING " DON’T WORRY BE HAPPY" THAT WAS ONE OF HIS SAYINGS. GOD GOT ANOTHER GREAT ANGEL. I KNOW JOE WILL BE LOOKING OUT FOR ALL OF HIS FAMILY AND FRIENDS. MY HEART GOES OUT TO EACH FAMILY MEMBER. ALWAYS REMEMBER AND CHERISH THE GOOD TIMES. MEMORIES PLAY A KEY ROLE AFTER LOSING A LOVE ONE.

WITH DEEP SYMPATHY
CINDY GENTZLER WILBURN

Joe will be missed by many. His passion for his family and helping others has been an inspiration to us for the years we have known him.

Our prayers go out to Michelle and the entire family.

Tony and Pat Tefel

Dear Michelle and family — I join all these others who remember Joe with such great fondness. As part of the extended Herr family, I too can recall any number of times that Joe jumped to the rescue — whether it was of the "call Hosar!" variety, or flower sales, or nearly anything else. Where there was a need, Joe was ready to help. I always enjoyed seeing him when he was doing his car work at the farm. What a happy guy! I am sure that the days to come will be difficult for you; know that you are lifted in prayer by many who love you and your family. How blessed we are to have the assurance that we will meet again.

In sympathy — June (and Jake) Rabatin (Marty’s sister and fellow flower-salesman)

Michelle and family,

We could not believe it when Mike called to share with us the tragic loss of Joe. May the love and prayers of family and friends sustain u and your children during this time. Wish we could be with u all today as u celebrate the life of ur awesome husband. Huge hugs are awaiting for u when we see each other again real soon.

Much love,
The Strickler family
(Mike, Sue, KateLynn and Jacob)

Our regrets are with you all. Sorry we could not make it to the service. Joe was a great man and knew what sharing and helping people were about not all people know that but Joe did. Joe will me missed by a lot of people especially us. regrets to the family.

Joe & Pat Vaccarino

Dear Davis Kids (and Michelle),
What a blessing your dad was to this earth. Everyone who met him remembered him as a nice guy and a helper to all. He is now up in heaven looking down on you guys with love. You will miss him on this earth, but he will be there to welcome you when your time here is over.
You dad was loved by all but he loved you and your mom the most. Never forget that.
You have the deepest condolences from the entire Purcell family,
 Tom, Janet, Beth, Sarah, TJ, and Mary

Gosh, I don’t know which rescue story to tell, there have been several.  One day I was in a box truck, headed to Phoenixville to pick up a load of flowers.  I took a wrong turn and went under a low bridge and ended up with a convertible truck in the ghetto.  In about an hour, Joe and Michelle were there with a generator and a sawzall and made my truck roadworthy!  We went to Shady Maple buffet to celebrate!

Joe was such a servant.  It seemed like he was sitting by his phone waiting for an emergency!  I sure will miss him.

Fred Herr

One time about two years ago the Rhinos were all having a late dinner at Lyndon Diner in Lancaster. The waitress was unwilling to split the check amongst our large group. I will always remember how gracefully Joe persuaded the employee of that diner to allow us to split the check. I know it’s not a major thing but at the time I was impressed. He exuded the qualities of a leader and I appreciate that ripple effect.

Heather Argenbright

My thoughts and prayers are with you during this difficult time.

Joe will remain in our hearts forever.

Lord, as we mourn the sudden death of Joe, show us the immense power of Your goodness and strengthen our belief that he has entered into Your Presence. Amen.

Love & God Bless,
Melissa Goodwin

You are all in my thoughts and prayers. 

Amy Dornsife

We are forever thankful to the Lord for the chance we had to get to know just a small bit of Joe. We looked up to him and fell right in love with both him and his lovely wife. Michele, this life is not our own and we pray that the Lord keeps you strong. If you need us, we are there. Prayer is the best thing in a time like this and I promise you, we are praying.

Love always and forever,
Randy and Anita Trythall

We feel as if we have lost a member of OUR family too….

Joe’s huge heart had  room for everyone he met.   How many others felt that he was theirs, as well. He loved EVERYONE and wanted to make each life happier…and frequently did.

As a friend, there was none better….Joe was ALWAYS there to help.   Once in our flower business he spent an entire cold night delivering and setting up heaters in flower tents to keep the flowers from freezing.  (and then worked selling those flowers all the next day with no sleep!) 

He could fix ANYTHING!  When there was a mechanical or electronic or computer problem someone would say…"Call Hosar. He can fix it".  

As a salesman, he was the best.  No matter what the product or who the potential buyer, Joe would make the sale!

His family meant the world to him and he worked so hard to make a good life for them, often in spite of his terrible health problems.

Despite his nearly constant health problems, his happy spirit affected everyone he met.  No matter how bad things were, there was Joe, smiling and working harder to fix it all.

As a Christian he must have made Jesus smile.  He LIVED the love. 
And now, even as our hearts are grieving, we rejoice with Joe as he is with his Savior and in perfect health.   We can just picture him there with Jesus…altho he’s probably frustrated that there’s nothing in Heaven for him to fix!

To the Davis Family we say thank you for sharing Joe with us.  He was incredibly special.

With love and prayers for you from the Herr Family

I am sorry to hear about Joseph Davis. May God be with you in your time of sorrow.

Calvin Diane Hartman

Joe was a dear man, with a heart as big as all outdoors and an unquenchable spirit and joy. He was dearly loved by all who knew him, and will be dearly missed. He impacted many lives with his caring and kindness.
Bob and Cathy Kilpatrick

my condolences. Joe will be missed in the Lancaster area. He did so much for his fellow man, in serving of himself. team rhinos will still "charge", with Joe in our hearts and minds.

Eugene P. McCorkle

Michele,

Just wanted to tell you how sad I was when I heard about Joe.  He was such a generous, giving person.  I remember one time when my then girlfriend’s car broke down in the middle of the night, Joe dropped everything and drove 2 hours each way to go get her.  I also remember Easter Saturday night about 20 years ago when it got really cold – Joe and I drove around all night putting heaters in the flower tents.  We had such a good time and some great conversation. I also remember we sold a flower to some drunkard at 2:00 AM Easter Sunday – we both laughed about that.

I liked Joe so much and – even though I hadnt seen him in 3/4 years – will really miss him.  He was truly a great guy. I will be praying for your family.

~Chris Herr

What a great guy! Always smiling, always cheerful a stellar attitude, an example to many. He will surely be missed.

Condolences to the family, you will be in our prayers.
Byron & Sophia Cleary

Joe was our nephew by marriage.  He was married to our niece, Michele Davis. They have three lovely children whom we affectionately called "our munchkins"–Alyssa, Nick and Ivy. Joe was a kind and giving man.  He would help anyone who needed help especially our children Jake and Kate.  He taught them how to fix cars or anything else needing fixed.  They were always calling Joe for advice especially Kate. Joe always had time to listen to them. For this, we thank him so very, very much.  Joe never complained about his medical problems or his pain.  You would be surprised how much he could do with his limited eyesight! He showed us all how to be brave, courageous and helpful to others in spite of his own problems.  He will always be in our thoughts, our hearts, our prayers and all that we do to help his family. We hope that everyone out there touched by Joe’s kindness will take the time to be there for his family for whatever they need. He extended his hand to help you so extend the same to his family. We love you, Joe, and we will miss you so very much. We will be here for Michele and our "munchkins"!  Our love and thanks:

A. Michael and Mary Jo Bermel

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