Obituaries
Obituary: Barbara Davidson, 91, Wilton
Barb was a people magnet because of her warm spirit and broad smile. She was the most optimistic person even in the darkest times.
WILTON, CT — Friends and family grieve the loss of Barbara Davidson, who was 91 years old when she died on All Hollow's Eve.
Barbara was born March 19, 1927 to Bertha Mae Gebo and Louis Henry Ingwersen in Oakland. She grew up on the North Shore of Chicago with her two brothers, Robert and James. She graduated from New Trier Township High School.
Barbara studied at Monticello Seminary for Women in Godfrey, Illinois and Frances Harrington's Institute of Interior Design in Chicago.She married Don Q. Davidson at Church of the Holy Comforter in Kenilworth, Illinois in 1950. Barb and Don raised a family of three girls while Don worked 25 years for Ladies' Home Journal. Barb embodied the magazine's motto, "Never Underestimate the Power of a Woman." Curtis Publishing transferred the couple from Chicago to Minneapolis and back again, and then to New York in 1968, when they settled in Wilton, Connecticut.
In 1975, after their girls left the nest, Barb and Don adopted their two grandsons and began a second family.When Don retired, he took up cabinetmaking and worked under Barb's astute direction in her interior design business. Barb freelanced her entire adult life, lending her prodigious talents to clients, to friends, to the Flower Guild at St. Matthew's where she worshipped for fifty years, and throughout her eighties, as a volunteer of the Women's Board of Norwalk Hospital, designing the windows for their thrift store, Treasure House.
Barbara found great solace wiling away the hours in her garden. The satisfaction of seeing the result of one's labor grow and flourish, and sharing her homes and gardens with family and friends brought a richness and fullness to her life.Barb was a people magnet because of her warm spirit and broad smile. She was the most optimistic person even in the darkest times; her vibrant smile and hearty laughter uplifted all who loved her.
Barbara's perseverance through adversity is her legacy. She demonstrated unparalleled strength and wisdom through her life, even when facing cancer.Two days before she died, Barb was dressed elegantly, joking around, beautiful and gracious, in relationship, and clear thinking. She is survived by her husband, Don Q. Davidson, her son Christopher Davidson, her daughter Karen Davidson Seward, her son-in-law Peter Seward, her brother James J. Ingwersen, and a spectacular array of friends and their children from all parts of her life. Barb was predeceased by three other children.
Please join us at a service in her memory at St. Matthew's Episcopal Church, 36 New Canaan Rd., Wilton on November 11th, 2018 at 1 p.m. All are welcome. A reception will follow.In Barbara's honor, please donate your cast offs to Treasure House to benefit Norwalk Hospital or send a donation to St. Matthew's to support the Flower Guild with "Barbara Davidson" noted in the memo line of your check.
