Elaine Kimball Carleton, beloved wife and mother, adored by all who knew her, departed this world early in the morning of Monday, May 13, 2019. She died peacefully at home, with her family by her side. She was known for her strength, resilience, compassion for others, and her deep faith. "The Lord will provide" was her daily mantra. She was devoted to the Episcopal Church, of which she was a lifelong member, and to her family, including her many cousins, with whom she enjoyed corresponding.
She was an avid volunteer and spearheaded many projects, including managing a free “Brown Bag” meal program for the homeless at the Church of the Good Shepherd in Lake Charles, LA; overseeing the annual Savannah, GA Tour of Homes and Gardens; coordinating the prayer ministry at Emmanuel Episcopal Church in Athens, GA; and spending over 800 hours at Learning Ally in Athens recording Latin textbooks for the blind and other print-disabled individuals.
Mrs. Carleton attended prep school at the Hockaday School in Dallas, TX (graduated in 1953). She was a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Sweet Briar College in Sweet Briar, VA (1957) and spent her junior year studying abroad at St. Andrews University in Scotland. She received her MA in Classics from the University of Texas at Austin (1969).
In 1966, she was a teaching assistant in the Classics Department at UT. The department, which had been located on an upper floor, was moved to the basement that year. Miss Kimball, as she was then, moved into her new, cramped office, which had two desks, two chairs, and a double rocker. Her assigned office mate was named Samuel Carleton. They were married the following year. The double rocker might have had something to do with it.
Born in Monroe, LA, Mrs. Carleton also lived in Lake Charles, LA; Tacoma, WA; Blackheath, England; and Savannah, Greensboro, and Athens, GA. She enjoyed her many years teaching Latin and English. She taught at the Hockaday School in Dallas, TX; the Shipley School in Bryn Mawr, PA; and Barbe and St. Louis high schools in Lake Charles, LA. When the Carletons moved to Savannah in 1981, she decided she wanted to stop teaching in classrooms and become a tour guide, which would be a learning experience for her and still allow her to teach others. She got her Class C license and drove a Gray Line bus for many years.
Mrs. Carleton was a perpetual reader and an active member of the Jane Austen Society; her ancient, dog-eared copy of Pride and Prejudice was always close by. Dorothy Sayers was another favorite author. Most recently she had been going through a stack of Brother Cadfael mysteries. She enjoyed being read to by her husband while she cooked dinner; this was a nightly ritual for many years.
She was a determined Anglophile and enjoyed all things British; afternoon tea has been a daily occurrence at her family’s home since the 1970s. Her favorite Britcom was “Keeping Up Appearances.” Every Christmas she made sure there were plenty of Christmas “crackers,” a British holiday tradition in which a cardboard tube is pulled apart, making a cracking noise, and “prizes” burst out. After dinner, family and guests were directed to pop the crackers and put on the paper crowns that flew out; then everyone took turns showing each other their prizes and reading silly jokes and riddles that were printed on pieces of paper that also erupted from the cracker. And then came the flaming plum pudding, which she joyfully presided over.
Her love of music, flowers, birds, and life’s simple joys was reflected in her sweet smile, her positive attitude, and her giant heart. She was a giver, and she walked the path of humility and immense gratitude for all the blessings in her life.
Dr. and Mrs. Carleton were married for 51 wonderful years, during which they often and enthusiastically traveled, visiting three continents. She is survived by Dr. Carleton; her son, George Carleton, of Portland, OR; her daughter, Elizabeth Carleton, of Asheville, NC; her brother, Rev. George A. Kimball, with his wife, Doris, of Oconomowoc, WI; niece Claire Kimball Pankratz with husband, Dick, of Waukesha, WI; niece Marian Kimball Eichinger with husband, Robert, of Minneapolis, MN; great-nephews Hunter and Jack Pankratz of Milwaukee, WI; great-niece Avery Pankratz of Chicago, IL; and great-niece Iris Eichinger of Minneapolis. She was preceded in death by her parents, Aimée deGraffenried Kimball and George Allen Kimball, of Lake Charles, LA.
A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. on Friday, June 21, at Emmanuel Episcopal Church in Athens, GA. Bernstein Funeral Home of Athens is in charge of arrangements.
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