2000 in review: In remembrance

The deaths of Luke Davis and Andre Stewart, noteworthy local sports

figures on opposite ends of life’s timeline, reverberated through the

Newport-Mesa community in 2000.

Davis, a 70-year Costa Mesa resident, died Nov. 29 at his Hamilton

Avenue home, leaving behind a 94-year legacy that included a longtime

coaching commitment with the former Harbor Area Baseball Association.

Stewart, a record-setting running back on Newport Harbor High’s 1999

CIF Southern Section Division VI champion, perished May 14 in car

accident in Riverside County. He was 18.

Davis, a member of Huntington Beach High’s 1926 Orange League champion

football team, retired at age 34 after earning financial security in the

oil business. The rest of his life, he devoted to community service, most

recognizably by coaching youth baseball teams that often overachieved.

An estimated 120 friends, family members and former players gathered

to pay tribute to his vast contributions at a Dec. 1 memorial service at

Westminster Memorial Park.

Harbor Area Baseball Association founder Rod MacMillian described

Davis as, “not only a championship coach, but a championship man.”

The short life of Stewart, who rushed for a school single-season

record 2,404 yards as a senior and earned numerous individual accolades,

was celebrated by 3,000 at a May 19 memorial service at Newport Harbor

High’s football stadium.

Teammates, family members, coaches and friends remembered Stewart as a

vibrant, strong-willed soul, whose personality and character were as

abundant as his athletic talent.