CLINTON DAVIS: Father, Model and
Hero
Clinton
Davis, a Port Authority policeman, was a disciplinarian.
"Keep in line, stay out of trouble and stay in school"
was the mantra he had for his children and his nephews
and nieces.
"When one of the kids got into trouble, he would have
a little talk with them," said his younger sister, Sandra
Davis. The children looked up to Mr. Davis, 38, as their
model, and the family savored the story of his
restraining a "huge crazy man" at the World Trade Center.
In the process, Mr. Davis tore his hamstring.
The knowledge that Mr. Davis died while helping others
gives the Flushing, Queens, family comfort. One of his
colleagues told his family that he ran in and out of the
north tower to evacuate people, and when he went in one
last time, the tower collapsed. His body was later found
on a stairs next to his closest friend, another Port
Authority police officer, Uhuru Houston.
"They knew their father died a hero," Ms. Davis said
of Clinton Davis's three chidren, ages 18, 12, and 10.
"And that made it a lot easier for them to accept the
facts." But still, they are on the move with their mother
to Texas, where their maternal grandparents live. The
memory New York evokes is just too painful.
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