Solent Sunbeam

FUNERAL FRIDAY 17TH

The funeral service will be held at the church of St James, Emsworth, on Friday 17th September at 2.30pm.
Donations, if desired, can be made by cheque payable to Chichester Harbour Conservancy to establish ‘The John Davis Trust’- to be used for initiatives on Chichester Harbour – and sent to W Wraight & Son, The Square, Emsworth, PO10 7EG, 01243 372255.
Valerie, Ben and Becky wish to thank everyone for their warm messages of support.

John Davis

Lt Col JQ Davis 1947-2010

"It is with great sadness that we report the death of Lt Col. John Q Davis OBE, Chichester Harbour Master and Manager.

John suffered a suspected heart attack on Saturday 28 August and was pronounced dead on arrival at Queen Alexandra Hospital. At the time, John was out racing in his beloved Solent Sunbeam Fleury.
John was appointed Harbour Master and Manager in July 1997. He worked tirelessly for Chichester Harbour, a place that was much loved by him and his family.
In 2005 he was awarded an OBE for his services to sailing and the environment.
Richard Craven, Acting Harbour Master said, ‘we are devastated by the sudden loss of John Davis, both a friend and colleague. Our thoughts are with his family at this difficult time.’
John is survived by his wife Valerie and two children Ben and Becky."

CHICHESTER HARBOUR CONSERVANCY

John - a lost friend

Our love and hearts go out to Val, Ben and Becky at their tragic loss. In the thirteen or so years that I knew him John made such an impact on every matter that he became involved with, and one of these was upon the Sunbeam Fleet.

Fleury When he became the Harbour Master I was Class Captain, and so it fell to me to find him a Sunbeam. The chance came when Richard Dale decided to retire from Sunbeam sailing, and so a delicate negotiation ensued with me in the middle. The deal was done and John and Val had their first Cowes Week in "Fleury", their newly acquired Sunbeam. I gave them my tidal charts and a bit of advice, and they promptly won the Week! I very soon realised that my help was not needed - and its been like that for twelve years! John and Val loved "Fleury" and sailing and racing together as husband and wife. Our Sunbeam Fleet has had far more than its fair share of memorable sailors, and John has been at the top of our fleet for twelve years. We shall so miss his presence on the water, and his charm and good humour when amongst us. He made everyone feel special, he was a truly lovely man, and we have all lost a good friend.
Goodbye John. We will always have a special place for you in our hearts.

Your sparing partner on "Danny"

ROGER WICKENS

John's Legacy as Harbour Master

"John transformed the management of Chichester Harbour so that under his leadership it could execute the Management Plan for the joy and benefit of us all, whether yachtsmen, fishermen, ornithologists or just day visitors.

The Lottery funding he obtained improved enormously the Conservancy's ability to deliver environmental projects.
There was a welcome to the harbour on Terror, the Solar Boat or on the Salterns Way Cycle Route.
John's legacy is evident wherever you look, in improved navigation marks, the management of moorings, the patrol boats, visitor access, harbour walks and working with schools.

John was no mean politician. These skills were invaluable in establishing a consensus to deal with conflicting views on such thorny issues as water quality or how to tackle the problem of erosion at East Head.

Recently he was countering the Regional Plan for increased housing by putting the case that this must never impact on our Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty that was so dear to his heart."

PETER NICHOLSON