Written on Edna Davis’ birthday cake were the words 95 Years Young which was fitting because, although her body has slowed, her mind is a youthful as ever.
Davis celebrated her 95th birthday at her Manhattan Beach home Sunday with dozens of friends and family. A popular topic of discussion among her guests was Davis’ career as a member of the WASPs (Women’s Airforce Service Pilots) when she was one of the first female pilots to serve in the military.
“This celebration isn’t about Edna Davis, it’s for the WASPS,” Davis said after thanking her guests who ranged from neighbors to many who traveled from other states.
In Sacramento on June 29, Assemblyman David Hadley (R-Torrance) presented Davis with a Resolution honoring her as the 2016 Veteran of the Year for the South Bay. He was on hand Sunday to help Davis celebrate her special day.
Davis’ story is one of many that will be told in FlyGirls, a dramatic ten-part television miniseries in development by The Red Door Films about the WASPs and the barriers these courageous women broke while serving their country.
FlyGirls director Matia Karrell and producer Hilary Prentice entertained Davis’ guests with previously unseen 16mm color footage taken by fellow WASP, 98-year-old Beverly Beesemyer, who had stored the film in her home since 1944.
Davis has been playing an active role in promoting FlyGirls, attending events that join The Greatest Generation with the Next Generation (recent female veterans of the U.S. Air Force) in discussions that include the history and future of women serving in the U.S. Military covering such topics as the ground-breaking ruling to allow women in combat in all areas of the Armed Services to the controversial ruling denying women WWII Veterans the right to be buried in Arlington Cemetery.
