KEN DAVIS: ‘HAD A GOOD LIFE ALL THE WAY’

Ken Davis, father, husband, brother, friend and son, passed away peacefully Sept. 12, 2020 at Baptist Hospital in Miami. He was 64. 

“If I could be anybody in the world, I’d be me.” That’s what Ken would say when asked how he was doing on any particular day. It’s no surprise. His life included adventures seemingly straight out of a story, he surrounded himself with family he considered friends, and friends he considered family. While his life was cut too short, it was a full life he was always proud to share and celebrate.

Little made Ken happier than being surrounded by the friends and family he loved so deeply. With them he shared his passion for music, appreciation of a good steak, a good glass of wine or a perfectly made Bacardi and Diet Coke. His love of the ocean paired with what he would call his moderate fishing skills, and an endless love for sunsets. He also enjoyed a proud career dedicated to public service. At the time of his passing he was vice mayor of Islamorada.

As fate would have it, his career began in Islamorada 40 years ago. In 1980, he joined the U.S. Coast Guard as a member of Coast Guard Intelligence. For six years, he worked as a special agent conducting criminal investigations while tracking deserters. Commendations included the Good Conduct Medal, the Meritorious Service Medal for criminal investigations and undercover work, and the Humanitarian Service Medal for special operations. 

In 1986, he was recruited by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), beginning his distinguished 22-year career where he earned numerous exceptional performance and service awards from the DEA and other law enforcement agencies.  His work moved him from Florida to California to Washington, D.C., around the world, then finally back to Florida where he retired as the resident-agent-in-charge of the DEA’s Florida Keys Office in Key West. Ken’s investigative and undercover exploits led him to the four corners of the globe, including Mexico, Colombia, Indonesia, Canada, Bali, Aruba and Venezuela, just to name a few.  For one case, Ken posed as a major drug trafficker for several weeks on a ship “somewhere” in the middle of the Pacific Ocean; the outcome of that investigation resulted in seizure of several tons of illegal drugs and narcotics. 

His work with DEA resulted in several highly successful multi-agency, international investigations targeting some of the world’s most notorious drug trafficking cartels. He directed investigative initiatives resulting in the seizures of large quantities of illicit narcotics, as well as tens of millions of dollars in cash and assets. As the resident-agent-in-charge of the Florida Keys, he established and led the coordinated efforts of local, state and federal agencies as part of a narcotics task force. Even though he rose through the leadership ranks of DEA, his love for undercover case work never wavered. If asked, he would have quickly traded his suit for weeks in ripped jeans and a T-shirt for a deep-cover assignment on a cargo ship on the ocean.  

In 2008, Ken retired from his esteemed career with DEA. Soon after, he was on a plane to Baghdad to work as a private contractor. He chronicled his Middle East experience in his essays, “The Road to Baghdad,” that were subsequently published in the Key West Blue Paper. Shortly after leaving, Ken wrote, “I’m sitting in the holding area of Ali Al Salem in Kuwait waiting to be loaded onto a bus for a dark ride to jet somewhere that will take us to Baghdad. We had slept through the car bomb at the main gate, the automatic gun fire and in our deep slumber the hovering helicopter. The living conditions may suck but the jobs are great and so are the people – and as Meatloaf sings, ‘two out of three ain’t bad.’” 

While there, he coordinated the execution of electronic surveillance programs as part of counter-intelligence efforts.  Never one to miss out on the chance for camaraderie or good conversation, he also founded a weekly “Thursday Night Men’s Club.”

After one year in Baghdad, Ken’s leadership and record of success secured him a position with the Department of Defense, U.S. Army as Intelligence Director of National Information and Investigation Advisory and Transition. He spent the next two years developing investigative practices for Iraqi police in their efforts to proactively prevent terrorism. Ken was awarded the Joint Service Civilian Commendation Medal and the Civilian Global War on Terrorism Medal from the U.S. Army.

In 2011, Ken returned to Islamorada where he attempted to embrace retirement with his wife, Charlotte Porter Davis. They enjoyed their life together – out on the water, sometimes traveling, but most often at home appreciating their piece of island paradise alongside the friends and family Ken affectionately referred to as “good people.” But after a few years, Ken’s love of the Keys together with his commitment to service led him to enter local politics. He was elected as a member of the village council and vice mayor of Islamorada, a position he has held since 2018. During that time, he strived to always do what he thought was best in order to preserve the village and what made it so special to him and so many others.

Ken considered himself the privileged beneficiary of the many people he loved, befriended, and shared his life. Along the ever changing path of life he made friends and built a family for which he was incredibly proud. He was dad to Robin (Missy) Schofield Hopp and her husband Steven, Patrick Davis and his fiancé Lauren, and Cayenne Isaksen and her husband Ken, sharing a special bond with each of them, constantly laughing with them, while guiding and pushing them to be their own best selves

He was an exceptionally proud “Pops” to five grandsons, Cortland, Colter, Logan, Myles and Carson, with all of whom he was eager to share his love of the ocean and fishing. He was the son to his late mother and father, Geraldine (Gerry) and Bill, the beloved brother of Mary Walden, Becky Hanley, Michael Davis, and William (Bill) Davis who has long referred to Ken as his “hero” for his service to the country. He was also a fun, loving uncle to his many nieces and nephews as well as a stepfather to Hannah and Charles. Ken believed family was also whoever you make it to be; the list of others who could be named as part of the family he built is long, comprised of the friends and loved ones he brought together along the way.  

If you were in a room with Ken Davis – you knew it, his presence filled it. There was no one else like him. He was passionate about everything he did, he had a way with words, and an unmistakable laugh. Along with that, he had a quick wit that he paired with an unmatched blend of sarcasm and charm. He appreciated words and lyrics, always looking for the significance the right ones could bring to a moment. That wit, together with his love for words, also made him a great writer. He wrote two books he hoped to one day publish – one a novel based on his longtime love of Florida and undercover work, the second a compilation of his essays from his time in Baghdad. 

Ken was proud of his career and his accomplishments, but he knew the real meaning of life was so much more than that. He valued true happiness, welcomed the challenges, learned from the hardships and appreciated the moments. A longtime Jimmy Buffett fan, the life Ken lived so well is best captured by one of his favorite songs, “Some of it’s magic, some it’s tragic, but I had a good life all the way.”