Obituary for Mary Polly Davis
July 27, 1930 – January 18, 2026
Polly Davis, age 95½, passed peacefully onto the next life on January 18, 2026, at the Equinox Terrace Assisted Living Community in Manchester Center, Vermont. She will be greatly missed by those who knew her.
Polly grew up in Framingham Center, Massachusetts, the daughter of James C. Davis, Sr. and Mary Ludlum Davis and sister of James C. Davis, Jr. Her cousins, aunts and uncles also lived in Framingham Center, and they shared a family life rich with history and culture.
Polly attended Framingham Public Schools, the Emma Willard School in Troy, New York, and graduated from Smith College in 1952, which included a junior year abroad in Paris. She attended graduate school at the University of California, Berkeley, studying clinical psychology. However, in 1959 she moved to New York City to teach English as a Second Language at Columbia University, also teaching in Tokyo for 1½ years.
In 1979, she began to study Tibetan Buddhism with Chogyam Trungpa, Rinpoche, which took her to Boulder, Colorado; the Bronx; Manhattan; Northampton, Massachusetts; and the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont. Polly emigrated to Nova Scotia, Canada, in the early 1990s, first living in Halifax and then settling on Cape Breton, following her chosen Buddhist community.
Polly was a pioneer in the curriculum development of English as a Second Language and published three volumes of grammar text, English Structure in Focus. She dedicated herself to a lifelong mission of instructing students and adults with linguistics. Her vast knowledge of world languages and music allowed her to communicate with almost anyone.
In the mid-1990s, Polly built a house on Scotch Hill in Margaree. There she gardened and kept house, practiced in the Shambhala Buddhist community, hosted and visited with friends and family, sang in the local chorus, Le Choeur du Havre, and was a talented weaver at the Scotsville School of Crafts. The Gaelic and Acadian residents and culture of Cape Breton gave her endless pleasure. She was generous with her time and donations to the causes she cherished, tutoring and mentoring those who asked. She sponsored adventurous trips and learning experiences for her great-nieces and -nephews. Polly enjoyed a challenging game of Scrabble, cookies and bread from local bakers, barbecues on the Cape Breton beaches, watching the sunset, and observing the dark star-filled skies.
In 2023, she moved back to the United States to be closer to her family. The Equinox Terrace provided Polly with joyful and tender end-of-life care.
Polly is survived by her much-loved family. Her sister-in-law, Mary-Wynne (Wendy) B. Davis, also resides at the Equinox Terrace and they spent many happy hours visiting together there in the last few years. Especially dear to Polly were her nieces Martha B. Davis of Henniker, NH and Jane B. D. Williams of Poultney, VT; her nephew James (Jic) C. Davis III of Carlisle, MA and her great-nieces and -nephews Page, Gaelyn, and Bryn Williams and their children; Simone Hibbard; and James C. Davis IV. Special recognition goes to niece Jane B. D. Williams, who made sure that Polly was cared for and comfortable in Vermont.
A celebration of life took place in the Summer of 2026 in Cape Breton. In keeping with Polly’s wishes, her remains will be scattered in the places she loved there.
