Obituary for Barney Davis
Barney M. Davis, the son of Miriam and Daniel Davis, was born on May 9, 1946 in the Manhattan Beach section of Brooklyn, New York. He was the older brother of a sister Ellen. At the age of 7, Barney’s family moved to the Boulevard Projects in Brooklyn.
Barney was very athletic; he would often play stickball and basketball with his friends in the neighborhood. Inhisearlyteens,heformedabandandplayedtheguitarwithagroupoffriends. He also worked as a summer youth counselor at the YWHA. Throughout his life, Barney played softball with close friends. He went as far as participating in Senior Slow Pitch Softball Leagues.
Barney attended P.S. 273 and Gershwin J.H.S. in the East New York section of Brooklyn. He was accepted into Stuyvesant High School, but wanted to attend Thomas Jefferson High School in Brooklyn with his friends. With much convincing from his dad, Barney attended Stuyvesant High School. He also attended Brooklyn College and played on the baseball team as their catcher. He earned both his B.A. and Masters degrees in Physical Education.
Barney worked as a teacher at several schools, starting at Goddard High School, then J.H.S. 57 and Middle School 324 in Brooklyn. He embarked upon coaching boys’ basketball in 1962, and then girls’ basketball around 1977. He started coaching his first girls’ basketball team at J.H.S. 324 in Brooklyn, and later formed a team at Penn Wortman Recreation Center.
Throughout his coaching career, Coach Davis would lead some of his players to various championships - two PSAL championships at both Paul Robeson and Medgar Evers high schools. He entered his Penn Wortman and MIKA girls’ basketball teams into numerous tournaments throughout NYC and won several championships with them as well. He also started the Dr. Martin Luther King Girls Basketball Tournament. He dedicated much of his time working diligently with his athletes practicing several times a week to improve their skills.
In his illustrious coaching career, Coach Davis helped many of the female athletes in his program obtain basketball scholarships to numerous colleges such as Howard University, Seton Hall, UMass, Georgetown, and North Carolina State just to name a few. Some of his girls were even fortunate enough to play professionally overseas and in the WNBA.
It was always more than basketball for Coach Davis. With essay writing and inspirational quotes, Barney saw the importance of challenging his athletes to “make change or be the change”. He always encouraged us to make good choices and demonstrate professionalism on and off the court.
Barney leaves behind several cousins, friends, and many daughters from his girls’ basketball family. He is a legend in the eyes of many. He will never be forgotten. His demonstration of love and guidance will remain in our hearts for the rest of our lives.
https://www.gofundme.com/f/coach-daviss-mika-memorial-fund/share?sharetype=teams
Barney was very athletic; he would often play stickball and basketball with his friends in the neighborhood. Inhisearlyteens,heformedabandandplayedtheguitarwithagroupoffriends. He also worked as a summer youth counselor at the YWHA. Throughout his life, Barney played softball with close friends. He went as far as participating in Senior Slow Pitch Softball Leagues.
Barney attended P.S. 273 and Gershwin J.H.S. in the East New York section of Brooklyn. He was accepted into Stuyvesant High School, but wanted to attend Thomas Jefferson High School in Brooklyn with his friends. With much convincing from his dad, Barney attended Stuyvesant High School. He also attended Brooklyn College and played on the baseball team as their catcher. He earned both his B.A. and Masters degrees in Physical Education.
Barney worked as a teacher at several schools, starting at Goddard High School, then J.H.S. 57 and Middle School 324 in Brooklyn. He embarked upon coaching boys’ basketball in 1962, and then girls’ basketball around 1977. He started coaching his first girls’ basketball team at J.H.S. 324 in Brooklyn, and later formed a team at Penn Wortman Recreation Center.
Throughout his coaching career, Coach Davis would lead some of his players to various championships - two PSAL championships at both Paul Robeson and Medgar Evers high schools. He entered his Penn Wortman and MIKA girls’ basketball teams into numerous tournaments throughout NYC and won several championships with them as well. He also started the Dr. Martin Luther King Girls Basketball Tournament. He dedicated much of his time working diligently with his athletes practicing several times a week to improve their skills.
In his illustrious coaching career, Coach Davis helped many of the female athletes in his program obtain basketball scholarships to numerous colleges such as Howard University, Seton Hall, UMass, Georgetown, and North Carolina State just to name a few. Some of his girls were even fortunate enough to play professionally overseas and in the WNBA.
It was always more than basketball for Coach Davis. With essay writing and inspirational quotes, Barney saw the importance of challenging his athletes to “make change or be the change”. He always encouraged us to make good choices and demonstrate professionalism on and off the court.
Barney leaves behind several cousins, friends, and many daughters from his girls’ basketball family. He is a legend in the eyes of many. He will never be forgotten. His demonstration of love and guidance will remain in our hearts for the rest of our lives.
https://www.gofundme.com/f/coach-daviss-mika-memorial-fund/share?sharetype=teams