Yvonne Elkins Shamel

Funeral Services for Yvonne Elkins Shamel will be conducted on Monday, March 25th, 2019 at 10:00 Am at The Reed-Culver Chapel with Pastor George Hubbard officiating. Her visitation will be held on Sunday, March 24th, 2019 beginning at 1:00 PM until 5:00 Pm at Reed-Culver. She will be laid to rest next to her parents at Pettit Cemetery in Park Hill, OK. Online condolences for Yvonne may be left at www.reedculver.com.

Pallbearers for Yvonne include her family, Walter Shamel, John “Sambo” Elkins, Bradley Price, Darrell Deckard, Jayson Doyle and Randy James. Her Honorary Pallbearers include Chase Reed, Blake Dray, and Gary Don Davis.

Yvonne Elkins Shamel was born on Wednesday, August 8th, 1951 in Tahlequah, OK, the daughter of Jim and Eunice (Mason) Elkins. She grew up with three brothers and three sisters, Johnnie, Jackie, Jay Ritchie, Linda Hardison, Mary Jane Wilson, and Virginia Mae Doyle. She attended school and then decided on a nursing career, and graduated from Bacone College with her degree in nursing. For 22 years, she was one of the best nurses in Intensive Care that Muskogee Regional Hospital ever had. She was caring and compassionate to a fault, but always kept steady in the job ahead and what needed to be done. Her knowledge is what saved many from a worse fate. On August 30th, 1968, she married her best friend and the father of her children, Donald Ray Shamel. Together they shared fifty years of love, memories and raised two sons and two daughters, Donna Lavon, Terry, Walter James and Jayson. When she wasn’t making a difference in people’s lives, she was home with the family she adored, especially her grandchildren. Her weekend off, she cooked a large breakfast, and made her famous buttermilk biscuits and sausage gravy or chocolate gravy. Often times, the family and friends would get together and get the musical instruments ready to play the best gospel music for miles around, and Yvonne was doing the singing. She raised beautiful flower beds, tackled jigsaw puzzles and Sudoku puzzles, and cherished the family she had been blessed with. Her grandchildren were her pride and joy and she blessed each and every one with a pet name that she held just for them, along with the promise of “I Love You The Bestest!!” Yvonne was the daughter, wife, Mama, Nana, and neighbor everyone would like to have. She was a Christian by faith, and praised the Lord with her healing works of mercy and her beautiful renditions of the gospel hymns she loved so well. The Lord called this good and faithful servant home from her many labors on Wednesday, March 20th, 2019 in Tahlequah, OK, surrounded by those she loved so very much. She was 67 years, 7 months and 12 days old. She leaves a vacant place that can never be filled, and will be greatly missed.

She is preceded in death by her mother, father, and two brothers, Johnnie and Jackie Elkins.

Those left to cherish her memory include her beloved husband and friend of fifty years, Don Shamel of the home. She leaves her children, Donna Lavon James and husband Randy of Tahlequah, OK, Terry Dray and husband Blake of Tahlequah, OK, Walter James Shamel and wife Julie of Tahlequah, and Jayson Doyle and wife Lacey of Belle Fourche, SD. She leaves three sisters and one brother, Linda Hardison of Little Kansas, Mary Jane Wilson and husband David of Keys, OK, Virginia Mae Doyle of Tahlequah and Jay Ritchie Elkins and wife Carolyn of Qualls, OK. Yvonne will live on in her seven grandchildren, Gary Don Davis and companion Tamara Bowman of Tahlequah, Bradley Price and wife Kayla of Tahlequah, Brittany Reed and husband Chase of Tahlequah, James Price and wife Mary of Tahlequah, Kelton Shamel of Tahlequah, Emma Dray of Tahlequah and Amber Beavers of Tennessee. She also leaves eight adored great grandchildren, Rylie Dawn Davis, Hayden Davis, Kyler Hammons, Kambri Reed, Lincoln price, Wyatt Reed, Sophia Price and Easton Davis all of Tahlequah, a special namesake niece also named Yvonne, as well as many nieces, nephews, cousins and a host of friends and loved ones.