CWA Mourns Another Victim

Niurka Davila, 47, had finished breakfast with friends on the 70th floor of the World Trade Center Sept. 11, then took an elevator to ground level for a smoke break. That was shortly before two jetliners struck the twin towers. The CWA News learned just before press time that she has not been heard from since. She is the 10th known CWA victim of the terrorist attacks.

Davila, a Local 1177 member, worked as a staff data control clerk for the Port Authority. “She was my amiga — that’s what we called each other,” said Jackie Willins of Local 1032, principal office assistant for telecommunications. “She was my best friend at work.”

Willins said Davila was Cuban and often would come to her for help with complicated English words. “We would laugh about it,” she said.

Davila had been with the Port Authority for 14 years. She and Willins always celebrated their April birthdays together.

Local 1177 Secretary-Treasurer Lerlene Walker said Davila worked her way up from data entry clerk and was taking business courses at night to prepare for the next step in her career.

Walker described Davila as a loving person with an ever-present smile who would help anyone. “She loved to bake,” Walker said. “Her cheesecake was beyond this world.”

Davila is survived by a son, Jose Oliver, daughter-in-law and infant granddaughter.