Gladys (Gaby) Davis, a volunteer for the Detroit Institute of Arts (DIA) Gallery Information Committee (GIC) for 10 years, has served as GIC program chair, Volunteer Committee Annual Meeting chair, and Staff and Volunteer Coffee chair. The award is given by a volunteer to a fellow volunteer for being helpful to visitors and colleagues, or displaying a positive attitude.
Ever since her father first brought her to see the Diego Rivera murals as a small child, Davis has considered the DIA her home away from home. She fondly remembers taking art classes at the DIA and at Arts and Crafts (now College for Creative Studies) as a child. Those activities sparked an interest in art that has remained with her ever since.
Although Davis started out as an art major at Wayne University (now Wayne State University), she eventually became an elementary school teacher in the Pontiac School System where she taught until her retirement in 1995. In her spare time Davis does needlecraft, belongs to three book clubs, and tutors adults as a volunteer with the Oakland Literacy Council. To Davis, nothing could be better than the opportunity to volunteer while being surrounded by the wonderful art at the DIA and the beauty of the museum building itself.
