Carol Ann (nee Bohlmann) Ross

Carol passed away in her sleep very peacefully at home on Sunday, February 19, after her year-long battle with Alzheimer's disease. Carol was born in San Antonio on October 7, 1937, to her parents, Charlotte and Victor Bohlmann. She graduated from Alamo Heights High School in 1955, where she was a member of The National Honor Society, and she lived in San Antonio until she entered The University of Texas at Austin shortly thereafter where she pledged Delta Gamma Sorority. Even before classes started, she met me, Gordon Ross, on a fraternity/sorority blind date fix-up the afternoon of September 14, 1955, when I picked her up at Scottish Rite Dormitory near the UT campus. Carol stuck with me from then on, even through my two years in the U. S. Army (lots of letters between Austin and Germany). When I got back from the army the end of 1957, we re-established our relationship, eventually marrying on June 12, 1959, a week after Carol graduated from UT—that's 58 years ago. After that, we moved to San Antonio where Carol landed a teaching job at Highlands High School and I got a job doing something or other. After a year of that, we moved back to Austin for me to (finally!) complete my degree at UT. Then back to San Antonio where I began a 10-year career with Honeywell and where our first son, David, was born in 1963. Then a transfer to Shreveport where we were blessed with the birth of our second son, Donald, in 1966. On to Dallas in 1969 where Carol taught at Bowman and Wilson Junior High Schools in Plano. I eventually changed jobs and we moved to Austin in 1976—we're still here. Carol signed on at Bedichek Junior High School, finally retiring in 1992. In her 26-year teaching career, Carol was honored to become a member of both Alpha Delta Kappa and Delta Kappa Gamma, international teachers' honor societies that promote excellence in teaching. I had started my company in 1983, and Praise the Lord! Carol was getting regular teachers' paychecks to carry us through those first lean years with my new company—she even worked all one summer to help out.

So here we are many years later—62 of 'em if you can still count from that September afternoon in 1955. It hasn't been easy dealing with Alzheimer's this past year, but we've had such world-class care from Nurses' Case Management for the past year and from Hospice Austin for the last week or two. I must express my appreciation of and gratitude to Carol's doctors: James Marroquin, Mark Clark, Jaron Winston, and Ray Vaughn. All the ladies from Nurses' Case Management have been angels on earth for us. Prital Brahmbhatt, Virginia Goodman, Stephani Hambrick, Nikki Neosu, Vanessa Okorie, Becky Rabiu, Lynn Ugianski, and Roxanne Welch—we could not have made it without them! Must remember our exercise physiologist, Jacy Mullins, who came every week to work out with both Carol and me.

Carol's passing leaves such a void in the lives of so many—our sons, David and Donald, David's wife, our dear, dear daughter-in-law Marianne, our grandchildren, Sam Ross, Shannon Boesch, and Sam Boesch—all the above with college degrees and employed! Not to forget our niece, Debbie Henry, her husband, Jack, and their daughter, Kelley—also our niece, Ricki Brady and her family in San Antonio. We must remember our best buddy, Duke II, our 4-year old Lab, and his affection for Carol, "The Lady." So many dear friends here in Austin and scattered across the USA. We are so thankful for all the prayers, visits, phone calls, and cards keeping in touch with Carol.

Carol's memorial service will be held at Tarrytown United Methodist Church (where we've been members for 41 years) here in Austin on Thursday, February 23, at 3:00 P.M., 2601 Exposition, to be conducted by our long-time friend and pastor Rev. Barry Fulton. Carol's ashes will be interred at Austin Memorial Park Cemetery on Hancock Drive in Austin (as mine will be eventually), and that will take place before Carol's memorial service, so there won't be a service at the cemetery. For those wishing to do so, memorial contributions in Carol's name may be made to the Memorial fund at Tarrytown United Methodist Church or to the Austin Humane Society or to a charity of choice.