Read about the donors who generously donated to The Seattle Public Library Foundation to help build the Lake City Branch.
The Lake City Branch children’s area is named in honor of Henrietta (Retta) H. Davis, whose family created a named endowment to support children’s books and programs. Davis was a long-time elementary school teacher and community volunteer. For many years after she retired, she priced rare books at the Salvation Army and educated visitors at the Seattle Aquarium and Pacific Science Center. She also loved literature, and frequently traveled with her family to Ashland for the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. She and her husband Aubrey Davis, former mayor of Mercer Island and CEO of Group Health Cooperative, lived full lives centered on family and service to their community. She passed away in 2008.
When the community campaign to re-imagine the Lake City Branch began, more than two dozen community members saw an opportunity to raise funds to honor the branch's beloved children’s librarian, Nancy O’Leary Pew. The result was a namesake project/meeting room that was created as part of the 2018 remodeling project.