Edgar Glenn Davis, former vice president of Eli Lilly and Company and a recognized authority in business-government relations and health care policies, has died. He was 83.

He was a graduate of Arsenal Technical High School, Kenyon College and the Harvard University Graduate School of Business Administration. He served in the U.S. Navy before joining Lilly as a financial analyst in 1958. Over a 33-year career, Ed held management responsibilities in the financial and marketing areas of the company prior to his appointment as vice president of corporate and government affairs.

He was a pharmaceutical industry delegate to several United Nations economic development conferences as well as to the World Health Organization in Geneva. In recognition of his efforts to advance collaboration between industry, non-governmental organizations and governments, he was elected to membership in the National Academies of Sciences Institute of Medicine.

Following his retirement from Lilly in 1991, Ed was appointed a Fellow at the Center for Business and Government at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, where he conducted research, seminars and conferences on pharmaceutical industry economics and public policy. Later, he was a visiting scholar at Green College, Oxford University, where he conducted research on the challenges of establishing the European Medical Evaluation Agency, which had been awarded to England as the center for pharmaceutical product approvals throughout the European Union.

With a strong commitment to education and community service, Ed was a trustee emeritus of Kenyon College and chairman emeritus of the National Fund for Medical Education. He was a trustee of the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra and a member of the board of the Nature Conservancy of Indiana, and the National Art Museum of Sports. Over the years, he had chaired the board of the Indiana Repertory Theatre, and was a member of the boards of the Eiteljorg Museum and the Indiana Historical Society. He was a member of the Service Club and Indianapolis Literary Club.

Ed was an avid sailor and enjoyed many summers at his Martha’s Vineyard home in Edgartown. As a Florida resident, he became an active boater in Naples. He was a member of the Naples Yacht Club and the Royal Poincianna Golf Club. He was a dedicated golfer who preferred the fellowship of the game to competitive matches.

He is survived by his wife, Joanne (Jo), with whom he was blessed to enjoy an active life of travel and constant adventure. Additional survivors include daughters Anne-Elizabeth, Amy Alandt and Edgar G. Davis Jr.; grandsons John Christopher Davis and F. Alexander Polestra; granddaughters Margaret Ann Morrow, and great-granddaughter Lilianna Morrow.

Visitation will be Thursday, August 28, at Leppert Mortuary, Nora Chapel 740 E. 86th street, Indianapolis, from 6 to 8 p.m. and also on Friday, August 29, at St. Augustine Home for the Aged, 2345 West 86th street, Indianapolis, from 10 to 11 a.m. with a mass at 11 a.m. A memorial service will be held at the Church of the Holy Spirit at Kenyon College, Gambier, Ohio.

In lieu of flowers, friends are encouraged to contribute to Wheeler Mission or the Little Sisters of the Poor. You are invited to send condolences to the family at leppertmortuary.com.