Louis Davis Kaiser

Their Story

Louis Davis Kaiser was born on February 5, 1945, to Dorothy Johnson and Hudey Kizer, in Paducah, Kentucky. He had a sister named Janice. During his childhood he grew up in Rock Island and attended Rock Island High School. He played basketball there and was inducted into the hall of fame. He was known to be very athletic and a great scorer and re-bounder during his basketball career.¹

After high school, Louis served in the Army during the Vietnam War. In 1969 he was assigned as a personnel specialist with the 1st Infantry Division near Di An, Vietnam.

During the Vietnam War, young men were chosen at random to serve in the war, they were not given a choice. If they refused to serve, they were criminalized. Louis was an SP-5 rank in the Army. During his time serving, he earned the Army Commendation Medal and the Bronze Star Medal. The Army Commendation Medal is awarded to someone serving in the United States Army who has committed an admirable act of service, performance, or achievement, or an act of courage or heroism.² The Bronze Star Medal is awarded to military personnel for heroic achievement, heroic service, admirable achievement, or admirable service in a combat zone.³

Louis attended St. Ambrose University where he played basketball, which landed him in the St. Ambrose Hall of Fame. He received his bachelor’s degree in 1967.⁴ Following graduation, Louis worked at John Deere for 25 years as a safety coordinator. Later, he worked at Walmart until he retired in 2018. He had a daughter named Kristal. Later, he had two granddaughters, Mia and Michayla. He had many hobbies, including reading, being outdoors, and collecting antiques to restore.⁵

A fun memory for Louis Davis Kaiser was a trip back to his birth place, Paducah, Kentucky. He visited in August of 1991, where he attended a community picnic with his family. About five hundred people showed up to the picnic selling food, jewelry, clothes, and more. This tradition started in 1982. The community was excited about the picnic every year, L’Tanya Shumpert Kizer said, “This is just my favorite time. This represents the togetherness of the African-American race. It’s just great.”⁶

Louis passed away April 8, 2020, at UnityPoint Health – Trinity Rock Island. He was seventy-five years old.⁷

To learn more about Louis’ years at St. Ambrose University, visit Celebrating Two Pioneers for Ambrosian Diversity (sau.edu).