Carolyn Lockamy Warren

Carolyn Lockamy Warren passed away peacefully on March 4, 2018 at the age of 91 at the Crystal Coast Hospice House.

A Celebration of Life will be held at 2pm on Sunday April 8th at the First Presbyterian Church in Morehead City. The family will receive friends at the church immediately following the service.

Carolyn wanted to be remembered as, “One who tried to see the best in all personalities around me, with appreciation for the differences. My hopes and aims were to be a bridge over troubled waters and a source of comfort in times of need.”

Carolyn was born in Jacksonville, NC in 1926. She and her sister Eleanor grew up in a loving multi-generational family in a home built by her father and grandfather. She met the love of her life, Richard G. Warren of Pennsylvania who was in the Marine Corps at Camp Lejeune and who had been invited with other Marines to join the Lockamy family for Sunday dinner. Love was at first sight and eventually Dick asked for her hand in marriage. Carolyn’s mother said yes, but only if FIRST Carolyn had her degree from Meredith College in her other hand! (They eventually had two children, Richard Warren, Jr. (Rick) and Janet Lockamy Warren.)

Although a striking woman, it was her intellect and heart that drove her life. Carolyn graduated from Meredith College in May 1947. She and Dick were soon married and moved to Maine so that Dick could finish his bachelor’s degree at Bowdoin. (She taught 37 children – grades 4,5,6,7, and 8 all in the same room at the same time. She lead the local Girl Scouts from Brownies all the way up through Senior Scouts. She served on the Campership Committee for Western Pennsylvania (serving 30,000 Girl Scouts). She was a snow driver with Meals on Wheels and also volunteered with the American Association of University Women.

The steel Industry took Carolyn and Dick to Pittsburgh, PA and then out to the Midwest in Michigan City, Indiana. Taking an early retirement from National Steel, Dick was appointed by the Reagan Administration to work and live in Washington D.C.  Carolyn became a dedicated volunteer in the Executive Office of the White House answering phone calls from the general public. It proved to be a fascinating job listening to widely varied opinions and expectations from people. She eventually worked in the private correspondence office of First Lady Barbara Bush. She took her civic duty very seriously, kept up with the daily news, read the Wall Street Journal, and once cancelled a doctor’s appointment to ensure her right to vote in the last presidential election.

Dick retired in 1989 and they decided to move to the Crystal Coast in beautiful Morehead City in 1989 to be near family and the ocean. They were frequent supporters of local music events, particularly those of the First Presbyterian Church. They both treasured the Christmas Eve candle light services (as in their earlier years this had been the Warren family responsibility for their church in both Indiana and Pennsylvania).

Overseeing Dick’s last years and months, as he suffered from Alzheimer’s, was Carolyn’s devotion until his passing in February 2007. They had been married for nearly 60 years.

Finally, heart issues mounted for Carolyn. Her big heart was tired and worn out. Since the summer of 2016 , she needed 24 hour care in her home.  A team of caregivers (proudly known as Team Carolyn) was assembled to allow Carolyn to continue to live in her home until her final days.  Her final two weeks were in the hospital and Hospice House. Her family and Team Carolyn were near her side as she peacefully slipped away with her favorite classical music playing in the background.

Carolyn is survived by her daughter Janet Lockamy Warren (spouse Mark Schmidt), sister Eleanor Lockamy Williams and Eleanor’s two children Kyle Williams and Joye Lockamy Williams Cordell. Joye and husband Greg Cordell and their three children, Mason, Keegan and Callum Cordell who were as close to her as if she were their special “third grandmother”. Numerous other nieces and nephews also survive her:  niece Susan Walton Castellanos (spouse Alex) and family of Alexandria , VA; Henry Warren and spouse Dominica Cipollene of Sarasota ,Florida ;  Debbie Warren Shade and spouse Jim Shade of Leesberg, Florida ; as well as  the entire Warren-Horner family of Pennsylvania. Girl Scouts from Long Beach Indiana, as well as friends from far and wide of Meredith College, NC; Washington, D.C. and her Brandywine Bay Condominium Group kept her connected to the ever changing world.

Once her family doctors and nurses of the original Down’east Medical Group, and always her friends, the families of Dr. Terri Goodman and of Dr. William Walker continued to watch over Carolyn until her life and health finally came to a close. Their final attention to her well being will always be gratefully remembered.  Many thanks to her devoted “Team Carolyn” (Christina Capps, Jennifer Cargill-Sargelis, Debra Hannan, Lynda Smith Keltner, Jane McInerny, Rena Mae Rieve, Karla Robinson, Liz Rose, Bebe Timberlake, and Kay Whaley ); and finally,  nurses Theresa Haggerty and Margaret Gamblin of Continuum Hospice group of Jacksonville . Team Carolyn became Forever Friends and new extended family members as they helped her celebrate all of life’s joys and sorrows via birthdays, holidays, and any celebratory event when she could no longer leave her home to do so. Carolyn wrote: “Life seems ever so much more tentative and therefore more precious.”

Carolyn was predeceased by her beloved spouse Richard Warren (Dick), son Rick, and parents Guy Alexander Lockamy and Gertrude Walton Lockamy of Jacksonville, NC.

Daughter Janet and son-in-law Mark are staying at Carolyn’s home and may be contacted there at her usual address and phone number.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the Special Music Fund of the First Presbyterian Church in Morehead City, 1604 Arendell St. Morehead City, NC 28557 or the Crystal Coast Hospice House, P.O. Box 640, Newport, North Carolina 28570, or cchhnc.org  252-808-2244.

Online condolences may be made at www.mundenfuneralhome.net

Arrangements are by Munden Funeral Home and Crematory, Morehead City, NC.