Retired Baylor University Barber Dies at 92

Ervin Davis was a fixture in the SUB barbershop for more than 50 years

WACO, Texas (March 12, 2018) – Ervin Davis, the former campus barber who cut the hair of thousands of Baylor University students, faculty and staff for more than 50 years, died Friday in Waco. He was 92.

Funeral services for Davis were held March 12 in Waco. He was a member of Meadowbrook Baptist Church.

A U.S. Army veteran of World War II and recipient of two Bronze Stars, Davis began his barbering career on Feb. 20, 1955, at the barbershop on the first floor of the SUB. He served the campus community until the shop's eventual closing on Dec. 16, 2011, then continued to serve customers at a shop near the Baylor campus until his death.

Davis and Norman Gilchrest barbered a collective 102 years in Baylor's barbershop. When the shop closed, both retired, marking the end of an era for the university.

In a Baylor University story from 2011, Davis and Gilchrest said their work was more than just cutting and trimming hair. They developed a lifetime of friendships.

• Davis said Baylor's barbershop opened in 1948, but it wasn't until a friend recommended him to the shop that he applied for the position.

• "Another barber friend recommended me to Ms. Mathis (Marie Mathis, director of the SUB during the 1950s), who ran the building at that time," Davis said. "I came and talked to her and she begged me to take it (the job), so I did. I came and lived happily ever after."

• Gilchrest met Davis 10 years later through a mutual friend.

• "The first time I met him (Davis), I was still in barber school," Gilchrest said. "The man who owned the barber school brought me down here right before I went to finish and introduced me to Mr. Davis, and thought I would fit in good here."

• But the day Gilchrest received his barber certification, he also received a military notice. Gilchrest filled in for barbers in a shop in the former Lake Air Shopping Center until he was called to basic training for the United States National Guard. When he returned, Davis was waiting with an offer.

• "When I came back, I heard Mr. Davis had been trying to get in touch with me and wanted to know if I wanted to come down (to Baylor), and he offered me the job," Gilchrest said.

• "It's been a perfect fit," Davis added.

• While the two men enjoy teasing each other, one thing they take seriously are the friendships they've created while at Baylor.

• "Through all of it, the most important thing to me is developing all the close - emphasis on close - friendships, which to me is something you can't buy if they're true friends," Davis said. "And I would consider that I have discovered a lot of true friends."

Davis was preceded in death by his parents, two brothers and two sisters. He is survived by his son, Eddy Davis, and wife, Linda, of Lorena; daughter, Darla Wilson, and husband, Dwain, of Waco; twin brother, Erwin Davis, of Austin; sister, LaVerne Necessary, of Gatesville; five grandchildren; eight great grandchildren; one great-great grandchild; numerous nieces and nephews; and special friend, Peggy Townsend.

ABOUT BAYLOR UNIVERSITY

Baylor University is a private Christian University and a nationally ranked research institution. The University provides a vibrant campus community for more than 17,000 students by blending interdisciplinary research with an international reputation for educational excellence and a faculty commitment to teaching and scholarship. Chartered in 1845 by the Republic of Texas through the efforts of Baptist pioneers, Baylor is the oldest continually operating University in Texas. Located in Waco, Baylor welcomes students from all 50 states and more than 80 countries to study a broad range of degrees among its 12 nationally recognized academic divisions.