Carol Fishburne Nunnelley

Carol was born in Montgomery, AL, on Christmas Day 1942, to Margaret and William Snipes “Fish” Fishburne. While her father served in an armored unit in France during World War II, Carol lived with her mother and aunt in a small apartment in Montgomery, where she honed her nascent journalistic skills by describing the neighbors from the balcony. The family settled in Mobile after the war, where Carol grew up on South Street and graduated from Murphy High School. She excelled in math but her true love was always writing.

She attended Samford University, where she met her husband Bill in a journalism class. She graduated from Samford and attended one year of sociology graduate school at the University of Kentucky before returning to join the staff of the Birmingham News in 1966. As one of a small number of women in the newsroom, Carol helped cover the civil rights era in Birmingham. She served as a reporter, then city editor, and ultimately managing editor of the paper. Among many stories, she covered or oversaw coverage of neglect and abuse in Alabama’s segregated juvenile corrections system, misuse of federal poverty dollars, and growing health problems among Gulf War veterans.

Slowing down was never in her nature. After retiring from the Birmingham News, Carol joined the Associated Press Managing Editors in 2001 to coordinate their education and credibility projects, spending several years living and working part time in Manhattan and reveling in Broadway and New York’s walking culture on the side. Devoted to local news, in 2015 Carol founded the Alabama Initiative for Independent Journalism and launched the BirminghamWatch nonprofit news website.

In addition to journalism, Carol was a great lover of food and an adept and enthusiastic cook. Her Christmas Eve shrimp creole was legendary. She was dedicated to the arts and collected the work of a number of local artists, including several Sybil Gibsons she purchased in the newsroom from Sybil herself.

She was a fearless parent, whether she was hosting an annual Christmas cookie decorating party for a hoard of elementary school kids or feeding a bunch of teenagers at many a dinner party, sleepover, and trip to the beach. She adored the Gulf Coast and could pull a freshly caught crab from a cooler and drop it in the pot without batting an eye. Long beach walks and hunting for shells also made her list of favorites, a love she has shared with her granddaughter.

She was effortlessly stylish, leading to much moaning from younger generations that she cleaned out her closet too well when styles changed. She was a dedicated and loving grandparent and was ever willing to play princesses or listen to a lecture on dinosaurs. She was a tolerant if sometimes skeptical surrogate parent to all her daughter Meg’s friends, and a tireless and loving supporter in all her husband Bill’s writing ventures.

The family wishes to thank Carol’s doctor and nurse practitioner at UAB’s Kirklin neurology clinic, as well as the many caregivers from Lipford Home Care who have helped care for her during her illness. Special appreciation goes to independent caregiver Misty Badgett, who’s kind, intuitive, and tireless care for Carol eased the challenges she faced in her last years. Thanks also to the nurses in the UAB Palliative Care Unit for their gentle and steady presence in Carol’s final days.

Carol is survived by her husband of fifty-seven years, Bill; daughter Meg Nunnelley Olsen (Mark) of Birmingham; two grandchildren, Nora and William; her brother Bill Fishburne (Debra) of Birmingham; and a host of nieces, nephews, friends, and colleagues for whom she is irreplaceable. She will be profoundly missed by every one of us.

Funeral services will be held on Monday, December 11, at 4:00 pm, at Ridout’s Valley Chapel in Homewood, with a reception to follow. The family welcomes flowers, and memorial donations can also be made to BirminghamWatch.