Dava JoAnn Anderson

Dava JoAnn (Yelton) Anderson, 67, of Bartlesville, passed away Saturday, January 31, 2026, in Tulsa.

Dava was born July 23, 1958, in Frankfurt, Germany, to Harold Dean and Peggy JoAnn (Anderson) Yelton. Coincidentally, Dava's married name was the same name as her mother's maiden name and her middle name was given after her mother's middle name. While in high school she played all the various sports and excelled in them. Dava was also an excellent bowler, earning many awards throughout the early years of her life. She played on a competitive traveling softball team, and her baby sister Tami loved going to those games. Dava was also on the East Cross Church's softball team along with her mother Peggy, and she was a key member of her college bowling team.

Dava graduated from Bartlesville Sooner High School in 1976 and soon after started working as a limousine driver for Phillips 66 in the 1980s. Her work history also includes about 10 years as an owner of a trucking company. Dava truly excelled as a truckdriver. Later, she worked as a customer service representative for many years for Met Life, Blue Cross and Blue Shield, and then later for Avis/Budget in the fleet management department, from which she retired in 2023.

Dava flourished as a facilitator and party planner. She was the family event organizer and leaves big shoes to fill. She could wait until the last minute to plan something and pull it off without a hitch. She was an artful decorator, a fashionista, and would create a wonderful atmosphere for the holidays, which the family were blessed to share together, even though they lived so far apart from each other. The family enjoyed spending numerous vacations together, traveling to San Francisco Bay, taking a tour of eastern Canada, and taking several annual trips to the Iowa Gas Swap Meet in Des Moines. Dava also took more than 20 consecutive trips to the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta in Albuquerque, where Tami lives.

Dava had a huge heart. She was the caregiver for her parents for the last two decades. She was a very good sister and would have given her family the shirt off her back, although Tami said Dava was extremely artful at pulling off pranks on her little sister. Dava made friends easily and had a lot of them. She was an extraordinary gift giver and could find the most obscure item to give that would tickle the receiver's fancy. Dava loved Mickey Mouse and Disney and possessed an extensive collection of items. She was also a dog lover.

Dava is survived by her loving father, Harold Dean Yelton; sister, Tami Dean Yelton, whose middle name was lovingly given after her father; and longtime family friend, Tammy Kiehne; and numerous extended family and friends.

She was preceded in death by her mother, Peggy JoAnn Yelton, who passed away on March 27, 2025.

Memorial services will be held at 2 p.m. Thursday, February 12, 2026, at East Cross Church in Bartlesville with Reverend Chad Perceful officiating. Dava's cremains will be inurned between her parent's plots at Nowata Memorial Park Cemetery. Arrangements are under the direction of Davis Family Funeral Home – Dewey Chapel. Online condolences and memories may be shared at www.DavisFamilyFuneralHome.com.