[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 201 (Thursday, December 20, 2018)]
[Senate]
[Page S7986]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        REMEMBERING BETTYE DAVIS

 Ms. MURKOWSKI. Mr. President, on December 2, 2018, Bettye 
Davis, a former Alaska legislator and community leader, passed away at 
the age of 80. The passing of Bettye Davis attracted national media 
attention, which is unusual, when an Alaska legislator passes. Bettye 
Davis was not only a historic figure in the State of Alaska, but also 
in the broader African-American community. She was the first African-
American to be elected to the Alaska State Senate.
  Bettye Davis was born in Homer, LA, and graduated from high school in 
Bernice, LA. She earned her bachelor's degree in social work in 1972 
from Grambling, one of America's great Historically Black Colleges and 
Universities. She also held a certificate in nursing from St. Anthony's 
College.
  Bettye's husband, Troy, was transferred to Alaska by the Air Force. 
Bettye came along. She recalled no way did she ever intend to live in 
Alaska, but when she arrived, she discovered that she loved the land, 
she loved the people, and the people of Alaska welcomed her. That was 
45 years ago, and it led Bettye to conclude that Alaska was her home. 
She often analogized her story to that of Ruth in the Bible--arriving 
in a foreign land, accepting the people, finding acceptance, and 
committing her life to serve the people of her new homeland.
  Bettye began a brilliant career in her adopted home State as a State 
civil servant. It began as a nurse at the Alaska Psychiatric Institute 
and subsequently as a social worker for the Alaska Department of Health 
and Social Services, retiring in 1986.
  She served in the Alaska House of Representatives from 1990-1996 and 
then in the Alaska Senate from 2001-2013. Bettye served as both 
majority whip and minority whip during her time in the Alaska House. 
She was the first African-American woman to serve in the Alaska House 
of Representatives.
  In between her periods of State legislative service, Bettye served on 
the Alaska State Board of Education, which she chaired from 1998-1999.
  Although she was defeated in a reelection bid to the Alaska Senate, 
her public service career continued on. Bettye joined the Anchorage 
School Board where she served from 2013 until 2018, when she resigned 
to attend to health issues. This was her third stint on the Anchorage 
School Board. Altogether, she served 11 years on the school board.
  Her community engagements were many and varied. She was a proud and 
active member of the Shiloh Missionary Baptist Church, the NAACP, the 
Alaska Black Leadership Conference, Common Ground, the League of Women 
Voters, Delta Sigma Theta, and the Zonta Club of Anchorage. She was 
inducted into the Alaska Women's Hall of Fame.
  In her induction speech, Bettye said she wanted to be remembered as 
someone who fought a good fight, did good work, and won the battle. 
Every day, she got up with a mission of doing something for somebody, 
somebody who couldn't speak for themselves, somebody who couldn't 
express themselves, somebody who just needed a kind word.
  Bettye Davis was all of that and more to the people of Alaska. 
Friends described her as a fortress, a champion for Alaska's children 
and the poor, a shining example of the best of politics, and the 
conscience of the legislature.
  It is with great sadness that we acknowledge the loss of this 
exceptional Alaska public servant on the floor of the U.S. Senate. 
While her voice will be sorely missed, her legacy of leadership sets an 
example for generations of Alaska leaders to come. On behalf of my 
Senate colleagues, I extend my condolences to Bettye's surviving family 
and all of her friends and colleagues who hold Bettye's memory 
dear.

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