Carol J Goethe

Born October 4, 1937 to Carl S. and Gertrude C. Hartman, Carol Jay Hartman was one of a pair. She and her sister, Mary Jo, were identical mirror twins. Carol Jay was even left- handed. Carol was an artist. She loved to work with color in a variety of media. Her father once fixed the attic as a bedroom for the twins when their younger brother was born. The twins drew pictures of horses on the wall when given their choice of decor. When they were growing up, the twins always fixed their hair the same. Most people couldn’t tell which was Mary Jo and which was Carol Jay. They both attended the University of Nebraska. Carol Jay met and married her husband Bruce Goethe just as she was ready to turn in her final thesis for graduation. The family didn’t know about the marriage until they attended our brother Larry’s wedding and signed in as Mr. and Mrs. Bruce Goethe. She spent most of her adult life in Omaha, Nebraska, where she worked in a hospital gift shop, and as a ward clerk. In recent years her health deteriorated but she was able to maintain an active life with the support of friends. Carol Jay was ”adopted” by the family of Juan Ruvalcaba who were next door neighbors. The children called her grandma and Juan’s wife made wonderful meals for her. Carol Jay is survived by two sisters, Annette Schoen of Rapid City South Dakota and Norma Jean Voller of Chula Vista, California; her brother Larry Hartman of Longmont Colorado; and several nieces and nephews. A funeral mass for Carol will be held Friday, March 24, 2023 at 10:00 AM at Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church, 2310 O Street, Omaha, Nebraska 68107, with Interment to follow at Westlawn-Hillcrest Memorial Park.