Janet (Hannon) Davis

Manchester, NH - Janet Hannon Davis, 96, formerly of Fox Hollow Rd, Troy, NY, died Sunday, August 1, 2021, at RiverWoods Manchester in Manchester, NH.

Janet was born at Samaritan Hospital in Troy, NY, on July 23, 1925. She was the daughter of the late Raymond J. Hannon, a CPA and prominent member of Troy’s business community, and the late Cherrie Rapp Hannon, a music teacher, church organist, and homemaker. The family lived for many years at 9 Whitman Court in Troy.

An only child, adored by her parents, Janet grew into a confident and capable young woman.  She attended Emma Willard School as a day student, graduating Cum Laude in 1943 with a special award for good citizenship. On graduation day, at the height of WWII with strict gas rationing in place, her father rented a horse drawn carriage from a stable near their home to take her out to lunch.  That fall she entered Wellesley College, graduating in 1947 as a Wellesley Scholar, Phi Beta Kappa, with a degree in Economics. 

She had considered continuing on to Stanford University for her master’s degree, but plans changed when she met John E. (Jack) Davis, a handsome young Navy doctor who had just returned home to Troy from military service in the South Pacific at the end of WWII. The meeting was engineered by a mutual friend of their mothers. They quickly fell for each other and were married May 15, 1948.  After several nomadic years during which Jack continued his post-war medical education and returned to the Navy during the Korean War, they settled in their hometown of Troy in 1953.  In 1996 they moved to a retirement community in Manchester, NH, to be closer to their adult children.  Janet’s beloved husband passed away in January 2013, a few months shy of their 65th wedding anniversary.

Like many women of her generation, Janet put her skills and education to work not in the business world, but through a lifetime of community service in Troy.  She was an active member of the First Baptist Church, serving on the Board of Deaconesses and Board of Trustees.   She served as President of the Junior League of Troy, receiving the Volunteer of the Year award in 1964.  She was a Trustee of the Troy Public Library (1986-94), a director and past President of the Literacy Volunteers of America in the Troy area, and a trustee of the Troy Cemetery Association. She and Jack were also members of The Country Club of Troy.    

Janet was a devoted mother who raised her family with love, respect, and a very steady hand. They include her children: Mark J. Davis (and wife Jane Niebling), Newburyport MA; Carol Lee Davis (and husband Jack Rodie), York ME; and Robert H. Davis (and wife Annmarie Davis), West Hartford CT; her six grandchildren: Anna Davis Saraceno, West Newbury MA; Harlan Davis, San Diego CA; Raymond Davis, West Hartford, CT; Daniel Davis, Phoenix AZ; Mary Davis, West Hartford CT; Jesse Rodie, Concord VT; and her four great-grandchildren: Thalia and Damian Saraceno, and Weston and Bradley Davis. 

Relatives and friends are invited to attend the graveside service at the Urn Garden at the Oakwood Avenue Entrance of Oakwood Cemetery on Sunday, October 3, 2021 at 1PM.

In lieu of flowers contributions may be made in memory of Janet Davis to the RiverWoods Retirement Community Annual Staff Fund  200 Alliance Way Manchester, NH 03102. 

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