Carolyn Josephine McCrory

Loving, lively, and sometimes a bit saucy, Carolyn McCrory filled her life with family, friends, and remarkable accomplishments. Raised in the small mountain town of Cotopaxi, Colorado, Carolyn quickly developed the independent spirit of her pioneer forebears. By thirteen she became a crack shot with her .22 rifle, sang mezzo-soprano in the choir, and played point guard on the mixed boy-and-girls basketball team. As an upperclassman, she read voraciously, graduated early from high school, and began to dream of faraway places.

Impetuous and romantic, in her first year at Western State College, Carolyn fell in love, married, and gave birth to her son, John. Their relationship lasted a lifetime; unfortunately, her marriage didn’t. At a time when divorce was rare and single mothers were ostracized, Carolyn defied the societal chill and returned bravely to class—books on one hip and John on the other.

Three years later, Carolyn embarked on her nomadic period, marrying a Navy pilot and crisscrossing the country. It was a life perfectly suited to her love of adventure and her knack for making friends. In Hawaii, she saw a volcano erupt, and in Alaska, she survived a major earthquake. In Carmel Valley, she discussed extraterrestrial beings with a future Apollo astronaut, and in Annapolis, she learned to sail a fifteen-foot knockabout. In Norfolk, where her husband was promoted to commanding officer of his squadron, Carolyn assumed a heavy mantle of responsibility. Witty and charming, she had always enjoyed socializing with the other “Navy Wives.” But now as their senior member she became a kind of materfamilias to the younger women—rushing one to the maternity ward, offering casseroles and gentle advice to harried mothers, and calming the gnawing fear they all shared—that their husbands might be lost at sea.

As was common in those days, Carolyn was a “stay-at-home mom” and her children were the center of her life. But after twenty years of selfless devotion, she left the empty nest and braved the job market. It was a time when women were often disparaged at work, but the challenges didn’t deter her. Starting as a secretary, she moved quickly to office factotum, junior sales rep, and eventually to regional marketer for a new cable company, USA Network. Carolyn was a natural-born salesperson, and after stints in New York and Chicago, she was promoted to senior vice president—one of the first female executives in the business.

But at the height of her career, she left it all to fulfill her deepest dream: to be with her family. Retiring to Winston-Salem, she immersed herself in the lives of her children and grandchildren, and though there was grief in those days—her younger son, Mark, died of cancer—Carolyn still shared with us her great love of life. Rollicking birthday parties and yogurt treats after school, Reynolda House and the Nutcracker, spicy mustard and her winsome West Highland terriers--all became part of Carolyn’s lovable lore.

And now, left to cherish Carolyn’s memory are her son, John DeBoder, and daughter-in-law, Leslie; grandchildren, Nora (Alex Grinfeld), Catherine, Jacob, and Robert DeBroder, and great-grandson, Grant Grinfeld; Carolyn’s beloved nieces, Tia and Marta Peterson and Lisa Peterson Fitzgerald, and her dear sister, Dorothea Dell Peterson; as well as friends both old and young. You touched our lives, Mom—and blessed us with your love.