Betsy Ross Davis

Betsy Ross Bartlett Davis passed away in Phoenix, Arizona on May 2, 2023. She was preceded in death by her husband of 52 years, Marlow D. Davis. She is survived by son, Dana Davis (Maureen), daughter Robin Kvitka (David); three granddaughters, Theora Kvitka (David Hardie), Vivian Kvitka (Arian Stechert), and Clare Davis and 27 beloved nieces and nephews of Bartlett and Davis families.

Betsy was born in the summer of 1922, the fourth of nine children, to Flavious Dorsey and Blanche Bartlett in the Jane Lew, WV home of her Hacker grandparents, joining the Bartlett and Hacker families proudly aware of their early American heritage and the many generations who had lived in and around Harrison County.

Her childhood home in the town of Clarksburg, WV was filled with the love of a big family and the love of music. She learned to play the piano, to sing and to play the saxophone in her very musical family. The family survived the great depression with careful budgeting, backyard vegetable and chicken farming while the children studied hard in school and helped each other with chores and taking care of younger siblings. In the last months of high school, the Bartlett family moved from town to a spacious farm in Lost Creek which they named Brookvue. It was there, at Brookvue, love and joy of family overflowed as Betsy and her siblings with spouses and children of their own, returned for summer reunions over more than 30 years.

Betsy chose West Liberty College for its dental hygiene program and in 1942 Betsy received her degree in dental hygiene, passed the boards and went to work in the Clarksburg office of Dr. John Davis (no relation.) By a lucky scheduling mistake, Marlow Davis, her former high school classmate, was seated in her dental chair and she “knew right then and there, he was the one.” Marlow, recently discharged from service in the army and attending WVU, must have known too they dated, married in 1949 and moved to Pittsburgh, PA where Marlow had joined a large accounting firm and Betsy discovered a new way to love dental hygiene, teaching children in local grade schools the importance of caring for their teeth. They started a family with son Dana and soon after daughter Robin was born, moved to Phoenix, AZ where Marlow practiced as a CPA and Betsy raised the kids.

Betsy resumed her dental hygiene career in 1957 working for several dentists. As an employer retired, she moved to a new dental office and most of her patients would follow her to the new practice. “They are my friends,” she would say. She continued working in her profession until 2016 which allowed her a remarkable career span of 74 years.

Betsy loved singing in church choirs, especially for Shadow Rock UCC and accompanied other congregations by piano and organ. She was the cub scout den mother, the blue birds and campfire girls’ leader, taught preschool Sunday School class and served PTA and Dental Hygiene associations, sewed puppets for hospitalized children, provided loads of fun and learning for her granddaughters, and enjoyed creating a little musical production with young neighbor friends, while never seeming to never run short of energy or good spirts.

She has been a contribution, inspiration to and a loving part of every neighborhood and group she has been a part of. Her cheer and energy lasted her 100 years in this world. The lives she was part of, not to mention the teeth she saved from decay, will long be grateful to her. She will certainly be missed by and kept in the hearts of many.

A Celebration of Life service will be held for Betsy Davis at 2:00 pm on Sunday, June 4th at Shadow Rock United Church of Christ, 12861 N. 8th Avenue, Phoenix, AZ.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.greenacresmortuary.net for the Davis family.