Mrs. Gloria D. Nowlin

Gloria Dean Davis Nowlin was born on November 27, 1948, in Forrest City, Arkansas. She was the second-born daughter of her loving parents, T. L. and Gustavia Davis. She graduated from Lincoln High School in 1966. A couple of years after graduation, she joined the “great migration” that many Southerners undertook, arriving in Chicago in 1968 with her eldest daughter, Delicia Davis, in tow. Working various jobs to survive in the Big City, including Montgomery Ward, Sears, and the post office, she met and fell in love with Charles Nowlin Jr. She was married while carrying her firstborn son, Afro Davis. Determining that the regular 9 to 5 wasn’t in her spirit, she became one of the first Black female street vendors on the South Side of Chicago. It was what fed her spirit and helped her to endure her life. A vibrant and outspoken woman, completely non-conventional, she wove her way through tremendous trenches. Never one to give up or become disgruntled with life, she went on to bear three other children: Mandrell Davis, the son of her union with Herman Houston; and two daughters, Tashee Gregory and Jovita Adkins, the children from her twenty-six-year relationship with Roosevelt Polk. The family into which she was born molded her heart and had a profound impact on the way she approached life. It was this foundation that led her to dedicate her life to her children and grandchildren. She would want to be remembered as a woman who never capitulated to the whims of oppression. Gloria was a firm believer in the power of the Lord and regularly attended Willis Temple Church of God in Christ, the church founded by her Popa, the late Andrew Willis. She transitioned from this life to the next realm on November 12, 2025. She was preceded in death by her father, T. L. Davis; her mother, Gustavia Davis; her brothers, Othela Rucker, William Rucker, and L. T. Davis; and her sister, Alberta Winston. Gloria’s memories will be cherished by her daughters, Delicia Davis, Tashee Gregory, and Jovita Adkins; her sons, Afro Davis and Mandrell Davis; her brothers, Walter Lee Davis (Ethel), Stanley Joe Davis, Melvin Davis, and David Davis; her sisters, Winfrey Taylor and Jeanatte Spearmon; 16 grandchildren, 2 great-grandchildren, and a host of nieces, nephews, cousins, and dear friends. Her unwavering devotion to family, her joyful spirit, and the countless fond memories she created will live on in the hearts of all who knew and loved her.

Mrs. Gloria D. Nowlin

November 27, 1948 - November 12, 2025