Busy designer, Orange church choir member Lorraine Davis turns 90 Tuesday
"I have so much energy I could build a house when I get up in the morning," Davis said.
Well, that's a good thing because at 90 Davis still works every day at her interior design business, belongs to
Her social life includes subscriptions to six theaters in
"She's an amazing lady," said longtime friend and fellow choir member
Davis -- like others who rack up the decades -- often gets asked, "What's your secret?"
She replies: "I don't drink, I don't smoke. Two out of three isn't bad."
Her genes are a factor, too, Davis said, as her mother lived until age 89 and her father to 84.
So far, for what she refers to as "wrapping up" her 90th year, Davis has had seven birthday dinners with small groups of friends. Her birthday is Tuesday.
On
Davis has a strong speaking and singing voice at 90 and. for her take-control ways, has been nicknamed "Sarge" by choir members -- a name she also earned independently in her old tap dancing group.
Davis opened her Designer's
Garofalo said Davis has done interior design for three generations in their family, beginning when Garofalo, now 70, was 8 years old.
"She has such a knack for style and nothing is too exhausting for her,"Garofalo said. "She made it such a labor of love." She noted Davis always went out of her way to include husbands' opinions in her design consultations.
A 1949 graduate of
Davis had an office until nine years ago when she began working out of her
"The thing I'm most proud of is that people can't say, 'I walked into a house and; (it's apparent that)
That's because Davis-designed spaces don't look alike since they're customized to the client's style and wants, which she learns in an extensive consultation.
Davis, who grew up in
Davis moved to
Miles, also a Syracuse graduate, was in the insurance business and at that time the city of
She met Miles on a blind date and she liked that he beat her those first weeks in bowling, ping pong, chess and tennis -- all activities in which she excelled. To her surprise, he even played a better duplicate bridge hand.
Davis finally told him she found it hard to believe that he just happened to know all her favorite activities. He then admitted he had done some "research" to woo her.
Davis said she joined
While still a lovely-sounding member of the church choir, Davis chuckles over her changing voice, which as expected is deepening with age.
Davis said she was a soprano as a child, then became an alto, then a second alto, a first tenor and now second tenor.
"The basses (in the church choir) are scared silly," she quipped, because that's for the deepest voices.
Choir director
Campbell said he and Davis bonded when they met because they were both from
An active member of the church, Davis is chair of the church's furnishings committee and has designed the interior of some rooms in the church.
Davis, who takes a handful of vitamins each day, is slender with a youthful face for 90 and a brisk gait. She said she has never in her life taken a pain pill -- not even an ibuprofen -- and has never used moisturizer or other product on her skin.
She and Miles have a son,
Like other 90-year-olds, Davis has soaked up a lot of wisdom through the decades and one of her favorite philosophies: "You can decide whether you're going to be happy and enjoy" any given day, she said.
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