Carol Ruth Poss Omohundro, avid birder, passionate community volunteer, adventurer, woman of strong opinions and WWII USMCWR veteran, was born October 21, 1923 and passed away on June 30, 2014. Carol was born and raised in Detroit, Michigan and graduated from Cooley High School in 1941. As a girl, she spent many a day at Belle Isle and in the winter could often be found ice skating in Palmer Park, skating was a passion she pursued for many years, graduating to racer skates and with skills that would rival Apollo Ono’s, even building an ice rink every winter in the back yard so her children could learn to skate like her (which unfortunately, they never did). She joined the United Stated Marine Corps – Women’s Reserve just before her 21st birthday. After boot camp at Camp Lejeune, she was stationed in San Diego where she performed payroll and clerical duties. She met life-long friends in the marines, traveled when she could, including of course, Tijuana, and was honorably discharged with the rank of Corporal. She fondly recalls the last leg of her journey home after being discharged; she and her best friend, Ginny, rode in a Marine cargo plane from San Antonio to Detroit that was riddled with bullet holes, and with a radio that had caught fire at some point and no longer functioned (the plane was apparently on its way to Detroit to be scrapped). She raised three children in West Bloomfield, Michigan went back to work in her forties, and loved every minute of it. She started out at the University of Michigan’s McMath-Hulbert Observatory and learned all about sun spots and solar flares. She finished her career at Energy Conversion Devices, as the administrative assistant to the company president. Carol had a sense of adventure and was always willing to gather family or a group of friends and travel. Among her adventures, she circled Lake Superior; she hiked part of the Eastern portion of the Appalachian Trail, and visited Yellowstone Park in the dead of winter. She was an avid birder, and though she never kept a “life list” she saw many birds over her years of watching. One of her favorite places to go birding was Ludington State Park (she knew the trails as well as the park rangers). She was a member of the Michigan Audubon Society. She became something of a “local expert” on identifying birds, and her resources were often called upon to identify that “strange looking bird in my backyard.” To her dismay, she never saw a Scissor-Tailed Flycatcher (but she will continue to keep looking.) Carol volunteered for many different organizations during the almost thirty years she lived in Ludington, Michigan. The organizations were numerous, as her passions and interests changed over the years. Organizations included, White Pine Village, Ludington State Park, The Red Cross (she made a mean lemon bar for donors), her Audubon groups, Friends of The Ludington Public Library (as an ardent reader, she bought as many books as she sold at the annual book sale), and her most recent passion, the Re Store. She enjoyed hiking, snow shoeing, cross country skiing and caring for the environment. She is preceded in death by her parents, Fredrick and Mabel Poss, and her older brother Fredrick. She was a strong, independent and amazing mom and is survived by her daughter Gail (husband Dan Beyers) and grandchildren Alec and Regan of Tulsa, OK; her son Paul (wife Gloria) and grandchildren Sara and Michael of Lake Forest, IL and daughter Ellen (husband Ron Dunn) of Nashville, TN and two nieces, Jane Poss of El Paso, TX and Mary Poss of University Park, PA. Her memorial service will be July 7, 2014 at 11:00 am at Emanuel Lutheran Church, 501 E Danaher St, Ludington, MI 49431 with Pastor William Huether officiating. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that you make a donation to Friends of The Ludington Public Library, 217 East Ludington Avenue, Ludington, MI 49431. Her family would also like to thank her doctor, James Ryan; her pastor, Mick Shriver at Emanuel Lutheran Church; Hospice of Michigan, in particular her care givers, Pam and Pat; and all her neighbors who watched over her, especially Elizabeth, who made some special treats for Carol in her last days. Please visit Carol’s personal memory page at www.oakgrovefh.com to share a photo or story with her family. The family has entrusted funeral arrangements with Oak Grove Funeral Home & Cremation Center in Ludington.
↧
Carol Omohundro
↧