Lydia Joanna Davis Eady

Lydia was the third daughter and the fourth and final child of Dr. Henderson and Mrs. Ruth Vinita Davis. Lydia was born in Kokomo, Indiana, during her father’s tenure as pastor of Wayman Chapel A.M.E. Church. Lydia was baptized as an infant and gave her life to Christ as a young child. Her church involvement was spent engaging with peers and adult members of the congregations while lovingly serving in many aspects of each church including the choirs, Sunday School, and the Young People’s Department of the Missionary Society. During her childhood, Lydia lived in several Midwestern cities after her father’s assignment to successive churches. When she was eighteen months old, the family moved from Kokomo to Waukegan, Illinois (Trinity A.M.E. Church). At three years old, Dr. Davis was moved to Milwaukee, Wisconsin (St. Mark A.M.E. Church), and at five years old, Lydia’s family moved to Minneapolis, Minnesota (St. Peter A.M.E. Church), where Lydia entered kindergarten. When Lydia was eight years old, the family moved to Des Moines, Iowa (St. Paul AME Church). When Lydia was thirteen years old and a high school freshman, Dr. Davis accepted the position of presiding elder of the North District of Indiana, where the family lived throughout Lydia’s high school career. While residing in Indianapolis, she assisted her parents when needed with her father’s duties as presiding elder and later as a general officer in the A.M.E. Church. Although Lydia attended several high schools in Indianapolis, she graduated from John Marshall High School. Lydia attended Howard University in Washington, D.C. and earned a bachelor's degree with Magna Cum Laude honors in Communications. A gifted communicator, writer, and event producer, Lydia devoted her career to telling the stories of Black excellence and lifting the communities she loved. As head of Joy Communications, she led media, public relations, and special events for an extraordinary roster of clients, including EBONY and JET magazines, Fashion Fair Cosmetics, Howard University, the national A.M.E. Church denomination, and Avocet Travel, founded by Clarence O. Smith, co-founder of Essence Magazine. She also played a pivotal role in the naming of the John H. Johnson School of Communications at Howard University. Lydia’s remarkable 20-year tenure as a Vice President at Johnson Publishing Company placed her at the center of some of the most celebrated moments in Black media history. For twelve years, she managed EBONY's American Black Achievement Awards in Hollywood, honoring luminaries such as Denzel Washington, Halle Berry, Samuel L. Jackson, and Maya Angelou. She traveled to Johannesburg as part of the executive team that launched EBONY South Africa, where she met with then-President Nelson Mandela at the Presidential mansion. She consulted on the ABC-TV network special Celebrate The Dream: 50 Years of EBONY and served as associate producer of EBONY/JET Celebrity Showcase. Her contributions to the Johnson Publishing legacy were deeply personal as well as professional. She produced the final interviews with EBONY founder John H. Johnson and EBONY Fashion Fair director Eunice W. Johnson. She curated the collection of hundreds of awards Mr. Johnson received over his 60-year publishing career. Lydia's heart for community was evident throughout her work in Chicago. She managed events and media for the Invitational Track and Field Banquet honoring CPS teen athletes, served as event manager for Heroes in the Hood, led media relations for the Walgreens Expressions Challenge in Chicago and St. Louis, and supported organizations including Ladies of Virtue, the I Am Abel Foundation, and Census 2020 community outreach. She handled publicity for the Guest House Foundation and the Bronzeville Art District Art Tour, the largest African American art district in the nation, and in 2021 managed media for the Chicago kickoff of the Isley Brothers' 60th Anniversary tour. During her impressive career, Lydia was inducted into Who’s Who of Women in the World and Who’s Who of American Women. She was also a poet and novelist, author of the novel Salvation Song and of the poetry collection Naked Thoughts: The Fire’s Inside. Lydia married Jacques Eady in Chicago in 1992, and through their union came her beloved two sons, Andrew and Matthew. Despite the amazing accomplishments throughout her career as a powerhouse publicist, Lydia considered being a mother her greatest accomplishment in life.

Lydia Joanna Davis Eady

May 4, 1958 - July 8, 2026