Tonight Julia Davis will realize just how many friends she has, when the people of Hasty and McClave turn out for a fundraising barbecue in her honor.
This is what happens when you raise two kids in a small community, spend 23 years with its volunteer fire department, pull two tours in Iraq with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and then find out you have lung cancer.
And while Davis isn’t overwhelmed by the cancer — she has too much sand for that — the generosity of her neighbors has bowled her over.
“It’s really difficult to put into words,” she said Monday after giving me a nickel tour of the Hasty- McClave firehouse. “I joined this department so I could pay the community back for the blessings they gave me and my children. And I really didn’t expect anything beyond that.
“But with this” — and her voice caught — “it’s so humbling to know people appreciated my efforts.”
Such are the ties that bind.
“Julia’s just wonderful,” said Colleen Piatt, owner of Hasty’s Valley Grocery. “She’s always there for everybody. We just want to thank her for everything she’s done for us.”
Davis lives in McClave and has spent 31 years as a civilian employee of the Corps of Engineers. She works nearby at the John Martin Reservoir dam in southeastern Colorado.
Hasty and McClave sit on U.S. 50 in eastern Bent County. About 130 people live in Hasty, 62 in McClave.
The firehouse sits at the end of Hasty’s Main Street, a four-block stretch that is paved, after a fashion.
Davis has been with the department since 1985. At 62, she’s worn every title except chief. “We have no age limits on our firefighters,” she said. “If you’re willing to go, we’re willing to take you.”
She was assistant chief the last seven years, until nagging leg pain left her unable to clamber into the trucks.
Turns out she had a malignant tumor on her sciatic nerve. By the time it was diagnosed in March, the cancer had spread to her lungs.
Davis was a heavy smoker for 25 years, quitting in 1990. She was surprised to learn her cancer is associated not with tobacco, but carcinogens such as solvents and asbestos. She figures she was exposed to something while working for the Corps of Engineers.
“There’s no point wallowing in self-pity,” she said. “To my thinking, God gives you challenges all your life and you just do the best you can. There are worse things than dealing with lung cancer.”
In 2005 and 2007, she spent a total of 15 months in Iraq, first in a farming region and then in industrial Basra. Her unit worked on everything from schools to power plants.
Davis views those trips as privilege. “I saw a lot of interesting things over there,” she said. “It was a chance to get involved with the bigger picture, something beyond the John Martin Dam.”
She has finished her chemotherapy. A round of radiation sessions begins Thursday.
Davis let out a laugh. “I’ve toyed with the idea of when I go bald, tattooing flames around my ears and buying hoop earrings with little firetrucks on them,” she said.
I marveled at her bearing. But this is a woman who has learned to go in harm’s way.
“I don’t know what you’d call my attitude, but I’ve learned there’s no crying over spilt milk,” she said. Then she grinned. “But I do regret missing some really good fires in the last few months.”
William Porter’s column runs Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Reach him at 303-954-1977 or wporter@denverpost.com.
