Delsa Teresa Davis passed away on April 19, 2024, age 71, at Baptist East Memorial Hospital, Memphis, Tennessee, attended by her niece Sarah Smith, following an arduous 8 month battle with Lymphoma.
Born January 19, 1953, in Nashville, Tennessee, Delsa was the second of three children born to Mary Estaleen (Eaves) Davis and Millard Ciscero Davis.
Delsa graduated from Madison High School, Madison, Tennessee in 1971, from Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah, in 1975, and from University of Tennessee Memphis School of Nursing in 1983. Soon after BYU graduation, she procured a job as a Social Worker in Memphis. After several years in this profession, she decided Social Work was not the long term career for her. She began taking classes at UT Memphis and upon graduation in 1983, she began her new career as a Registered Nurse at Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital, where she lovingly cared for countless children ages 0 to 18 for 37 years, retiring in 2021.
Delsa was involved in much in addition to her career. In the 1980’s she purchased a home in Cordova, Tennessee, and began transforming it into her own creation, both inside and out, doing much of the work herself. Other hobbies through the years included membership in the Memphis Iris Society, perhaps that was the onset of her passion for gardening. She also enjoyed reading all types of books, cooking elaborate recipes, and needlework for some years. Delsa was a conservative, followed politics closely, Ronald Reagan being her favorite president. Delsa was an avid BYU football and basketball fan. She also served faithfully in multiple capacities in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. These included several years as pianist for the church’s Primary (the children’s organization), and several years as a counselor in the presidency of the Relief Society, (the women’s organization). She enjoyed traveling and had planned to do more of that upon retirement.
Preceding Delsa in death are her mother, Mary Estaleen (Eaves) Davis (1999), her father, Millard Ciscero Davis (2010), and her brother, Troy Wade Davis (2023). She is survived by her sister, Denise (Davis) Smith, brother-in-law Tommi Smith, sister-in-law Joyce (Vosika) Davis, nieces Nicole (Davis) Hight (Billy), Sharon (Smith) Hadley (Kyle), and Sarah Elaine Smith, and by nephews Troy Wade Davis II (Melissa Webb) and Millard Corey Davis (Courtne’).
Services will be held Thursday, April 25, 2024 at Ardmore Chapel Funeral Home, Ardmore, Alabama with visitation being held from 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM. The Funeral Service will start at 2:30 PM with Bro. Bill Eaves officiating. Burial will follow at Sylone Cemetery, Elkmont, Alabama.
