Helgi Davis

HELGI DAVIS

MISSION – Helgi Davis, 76, entered eternal rest Sunday, June 29, 2025, at South Texas Health System McAllen after a brief illness. He was born on January 17, 1949 in Reykjavik, Iceland.

Helgi came from humble beginnings, spending much of his childhood in orphanages in both Iceland and the United States. Even though that experience left him with a somewhat skeptical view of life, he was of the mind that hard work was the road to success. He often shared stories of his first job delivering newspapers at the age of 6.

At the age of 17, he spent his summers doing custom combining jobs, helping with the harvest of wheat from Canada to Sweetwater, Texas.

Helgi joined the Army at the age of 19 after some questionable decisions. He served in Vietnam in 1969 and also served in Germany. While in Germany he developed a great love of travel and enjoying other cultures. That love continued throughout his life. His last dream was to travel to Antarctica. That would have completed his bucket list of visiting all the continents.

After retiring from the Army, Helgi and his wife, Sandra and daughter, Hope moved to the Rio Grande Valley. They arrived in 1985 and had planned to stay for five years and then return to Germany. The Rio Grande Valley became home for him and in 1990 he opened his first business, Edinburg Cards and Comics. Helgi was so successful with that, that he took over a little gaming shop named Myth Adventures. Knowing nothing about comics or gaming, he listened closely to his customers and that’s when he learned the secret of being successful in business. He would say, “Always listen to your customers!” Customers became fast friends and employees (Carl) became family.

During his years running Myth, Helgi would often help customers and employees who needed a helping hand. He was generous to a fault. Honest as the day is long. He had a profound belief in God, often remarking how very blessed he was. One those blessings is his granddaughter, Kali. Kali started working at Myth with Grampa. She quickly learned the ropes and then added her special touch. After 30 years of running Myth, Helgi felt it was time to pass the torch and gave the business to his granddaughter, Kali. She will carry on his legacy.

He is preceded in death by his parents, Buell and Fanney Davis; and a brother, Lawrence Davis.

Helgi is survived by his wife of 56 years, Sandra S. Davis; a daughter, Hope Ellen (Terry) Palacios; nine grandchildren, Shiloh Palacios, Kali (Joey) Galvan, Lilja Martinez, Alian Palacios, Annika Palacios, Audra (Steven) Cruz, Alexandra Palacios, Toribio “TJ” Palacios Jr., Andres Palacios; and seven great-grandchildren, Harlen Palacios, Janelle Saenz, Esteban Cruz, Romeo Cruz, Santiago Cruz, Adia Reyna, and Ezra Reyna.

Visitation will begin at 5 p.m., with a 6 p.m. memorial service on Wednesday, July 2, 2025, at Memorial Funeral Home, 208 E. Canton in Edinburg. Military honors will be conducted by VFW Post 7473 of Elsa.

Funeral services are under the direction of Memorial Funeral Home in Edinburg.