Carol Ann Wilson Watkins left this world on March 31, 2020.
Carol spent her life as a loving and adoring caregiver to her children, her friends, her family, and her patients.
Carol was first and foremost a loving mother. Her daughters were her greatest pride and joy – Ashley, Courtney and Lindsey. She taught each of her three daughters to nurture with a firm hand and to envelop everyone, but especially their own children, with love and patience. Carol raised her three daughters with everything she had and the result was nothing short of spectacular – Ashley, Courtney and Lindsey grew up to be mothers themselves and all three try to raise their children now in the same loving way as Carol had raised each of them years earlier.
Carol had an infectious and loving smile, gave enormous comforting hugs, whipped up comfort cooking, and gardened with a big green thumb (a trait she did not pass on to her children, unfortunately).
Carol became Gami – a grandmother – 16 years ago and deeply cherished that role as well. She was caring and loved to spoil her grandchildren with sweets of any kind (which she also loved!), trinkets, toys, and whatever odds and ends she could find to bring them.
Maura, Haley, Mason, Blythe, Blair and Win always knew that Gami would not arrive to greet them empty handed.
Carol was a kind and thoughtful friend, a devoted member to her church, and in her best days, demonstrated an energy and zest to accomplish her goals that was unsurpassed.
Carol grew up in small-town Ohio, primarily Belle Center, where she ran around with her siblings and friends, exploring, playing, and eating ice cream cones from one of the few local haunts. She particularly enjoyed her summers working at Beatley’s on Indian Lake. She instilled these small town experiences in raising her three daughters and sharing with them the joys of summertime in Ohio, with trips to the Dairy Isle for ice cream, playing marbles at their grandmother’s kitchen counter, exploring the depths of the basement of their mother’s childhood home, and picking fresh raspberries to enjoy for breakfast or as a treat.
Carol graduated from St. Rita’s School of Nursing in Lima, Ohio and began her career as a pediatric registered nurse in Atlanta, helping everyone who crossed her path. Carol’s welcoming smile, warm hugs, and patient spirit made pediatric nursing the perfect call for her. While she began her nursing career at Henrietta Egleston Hospital for Children, Carol went on to work at Georgia Baptist Hospital, where she was not only instrumental in opening the pediatric cardiovascular intensive care unit, but also served as its head nurse and supervisor until moving to Dallas. Carol continued her career in pediatric nursing after moving to Dallas, working at Children’s Medical Center and later at Pediatric Associates of Dallas. As her children grew, Carol began a second career as a legal nurse consultant, assisting lawyers in their interpretations of medical charts, pictures, and stories of individuals who she felt had not received the care they deserved.
Carol was preceded in death by her parents (Harry and Frances Wilson) and leaves behind her three daughters and sons-in-law, Ashley McDowell and Darren (Dallas, Texas), Courtney Wilkinson and David (Milton, Georgia), and Lindsey Beran and Dave (Dallas, Texas). She also leaves behind six adoring grandchildren, Maura and Mason McDowell, Haley Wilkinson, and Blythe, Blair, and Winston Beran, as well as her older sister Alvine Wilson, and younger siblings, Dennis Wilson and his wife Sherrie and Denise Stidam and her daughter, Carol’s loving niece and husband, Darcy and Travis Ramsey.
Carol was loving, gentle, kind, patient, and at times goofy in a funny way that the grandchildren just loved.
She will be sorely missed.
The family will hold a small graveside burial service at her gravesite at Sparkman-Hillcrest but looks forward to holding a larger celebration of life for all friends and family in the summer. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made in Carol’s name to the Northway Christian Day School at Northway Christian Church, or any charity assisting in tending to the needs of seniors, especially those seniors living with dementia.