Carol L. Trimmer

Muncie, Indiana: Carol Straley Trimmer, 75, died on November 20, 2019, after a long struggle in the Hospice Unit on the Oncology Ward at IU Health Ball Memorial Hospital.

Carol was born on January 17, 1944, in Corvallis, Oregon, where her father, Gordon Straley was training in the Army Officer Candidate School in preparation for combat in World War II. Carol and her mother, Virginia, traveled by train back to the Straley home in West Lafayette, Indiana. They lived there until her father returned from Europe where upon he resumed his position as head football coach and athletic director at the local high school.

In 1961, Carol graduated with honors from West Lafayette High School and began her undergraduate education. She received her BA with a double major in English and Theater from Purdue University in 1966 where she served as an officer in the Kappa Alpha Theta fraternity and met her future husband, Joseph F. Trimmer, in the Purdue Library. They were married in 1966 and Carol taught English at East Tipp High School while Joe completed his doctorate in English at Purdue.

In 1968, the couple moved to Muncie where Joe accepted a teaching position in the English Department at Ball State University. For twenty years, Carol worked as a legislative aide for Congressman Phil Sharp. Upon his retirement, she worked for several years as a Permissions Editor for Harcourt Brace Publishers and then for fifteen years as Director of Outreach for Indiana Public Radio until her retirement in 2010.

Carol was an extremely active volunteer. She worked for C.A.S.A. (Court Appointed Special Advocate), helping young people work their way through the judicial system. In addition, she served on Ball State University’s Discovery Group, providing funds for innovative immersive learning projects. She also worked on numerous art and cultural organizations through-out Indiana. She had a special affection for Arts Place in Portland, Indiana, a community she came to call her second hometown.

During the last months of her life, Carol was able to award the annual scholarships she endowed in her father’s name to the outstanding male and female scholar athletes graduating from West Lafayette High School. She tried—in vain—to complete her annual creative project—making beautifully individualized Christmas cards for over three hundred friends in Muncie, Portland and across the country. Knowing that she was ill, she also managed one last trip to her favorite natural spot, Martha’s Vineyard, where she recorded the sounds of birds, winds and water.

She is survived by her husband of fifty-three years, Joe; her son, Bob, Indianapolis; and her sister, Susan Straley, Richmond, California.

A Celebration of Life will be held on Sunday, December 15, 2019, at 3:00 p.m. at Minnetrista, 1200 North Minnetrista Pkwy, Muncie, Indiana 47303. Friends and family may call from 1:00 p.m. until time of service at Minnetrista.

In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts may be sent to The Community Foundation of Muncie and Delaware County for the CASA of Delaware County Fund, 200 E. Jackson Street, #100, Muncie, Indiana 47305; OR to the general endowment fund of Arts Place, P.O. Box 804, Portland, Indiana, 47371.

Elm Ridge Funeral Home is assisting the family with arrangements. Online condolences to the family may be sent to www.elmridgefuneralhome.com.