Wife, family honor Hesse teacher’s legacy of kindness, commitment

Linda Davis, a woman known for her singing voice and kind spirit, moved to Chatham County for love four years ago, determined to spend her life with the woman who was also her best friend, raise their children and help students she taught at Hesse K-8 School.

Her life ended last week after a car crash caused when a Guatemalan man fled federal immigration agents, ran a red light and smashed her vehicle, according to Chatham County police. The 52-year-old special education teacher was heading for teacher training at the public school known for its significant Hispanic student population and children in need of extra support.

Davis’ wife Consweulo has spent the days since that unforeseen tragedy numb, barely sleeping and struggling to cope without the person who was the glue for their blended family of seven children and who had brought her the most joy of her life.

“She loved our family. She loved her school, every single day there she loved helping those babies,” Consweulo Davis told The Current GA in a Sunday interview. “Linda was gentle. That’s why I fell in love with her. She loved me more than I had ever felt in my whole life. She made me feel safe.”

Linda Davis grew up in Beaufort, S.C., wanting to become a teacher. She worked at an elementary school there for several years, but spent considerable time in Savannah. In the Hostess City, she found both a church community and friendships at Agape Empowerment Ministries, the inclusive interdenominational congregation, where she met Consweulo about 15 years ago. 

A U.S. Army veteran who had grown up in North Carolina, Consweulo’s last posting was Hunter Army Airfield, and she decided to stay in Chatham County to attend Armstrong College. The two women had a lot in common. Both were educators and mothers — Consweulo had two children to Linda’s four — and quickly they became pillars of each other’s lives, despite their different personalities. 

Linda, for example, loved fashion and was passionate about her hairstyles. She was someone who could organize chaos in a house full of teenagers. Someone who never lost her temper. 

For her 50th birthday, Linda bought herself a crown and wore it all day long, Consweulo recalled. Her favorite cocktail was a French martini, which includes vodka, pineapple juice and Chambord liquor, a bottle renowned for the cap resembling a crown. “She was the queen,” Consweulo said, laughing before dabbing her eyes with a tissue. 

In 2021 the two women officially started dating, and Linda moved to Georgia. In 2023 they got married, deciding to share their lives together, proudly and publicly. Linda, said Consweulo, was living a new dream. “We had our kids moving in and out of our home, learning how to grow up. She told me that she wanted to be a full-time wife, and I told her, “Baby, I can support us,” she said. 

Family was the center of their lives. Linda stayed home, managed household affairs and emotional support, while Consweulo took charge of cooking. The couple and their kids, including a seventh child they were helping to raise, gathered around the dinner table almost every night. “She was the parent that I wished that I had growing up,” Consweulo said.

For fun, the family sang karaoke in their living room, with Linda taking the microphone for any ‘90s R&B tune. The fearless competitor would only balk when a Whitney Houston song would come up. “I can’t do her justice,” Consweulo recalled Linda as saying.  

The women relished experiencing new things together. At Linda’s favorite restaurant, Alligator Soul, she loved to eat elk. They traveled to the mountains of Tennessee, as well as the beaches of Puerto Rico. “I’d wake up each morning and tell her she was beautiful,” Consweulo said. “We told each other that we loved each other multiple times a day. We would never go to sleep without saying that. We were grateful for that love.”

But Linda also cared about the greater community.

Consweulo, who works at the Savannah-Chatham County Public School System as a special education administrator, conducted an assessment at Hesse. Her report concluded that the school needed more resources for children. In the years after the Covid pandemic, students have suffered with learning and skill development, while public schools have also faced a shortage of educators. When Consweulo told her about the need for more special education teachers, Linda decided to return to work, first as a substitute teacher and then as a full-time kindergarten teacher.

That made their lives more busy. Linda would wake up before dawn, work out and commute to Hesse. On some days, she wouldn’t make it home before dark.

“There was never a day that she wasn’t appreciative of the time she spent with those babies,” Consweulo said of the students at the school.

The family has not yet scheduled funeral services, as Davis’ body has not been released by the medical examiner. Chatham County Police Department has not released the incident report or the 911 calls related to the traffic accident, and Consweulo declined to talk about the ongoing investigation. 

Trying to handle the grief and loss is too enormous right now. “It’s not one day at a time. It’s one second at a time,” she said. 

She hopes that the Davis’ family’s personal tragedy doesn’t become political. At the same time, she wants the community and the wider world to remember her wife’s name.

“Linda Davis was extraordinary. You wanted to become a better person because of her,” Consweulo said.