Jim Phelps suggested that I post some memories of Carol under her own name...there are other memories of her in a conversation that started on Jim Coker's page.
I believe that Carol Caddellwas the first classmate to die. She was riding a horse and fell off and injured her shoulder. When they x-rayed it, they found cancer in the bones of her shoulder and upper arm. She had her arm amputated, came back to school with a prosthetic arm, and even went to a school dance. I remember her courage in coming back to school, in not giving up, in carrying her own books (with one arm), and someone who is a prince of a person took her to that year's prom! Jane Perrin remembers tutoring her in French so she could catch up with school work after missing so many days of class - and this was shortly before her death. My reaction to that is to admire Carol all the more. Who wants to conjugate verbs when time is running out? She just refused to be a victim. Gotta love that. I hope that I have just half the spunk that she had. What courage and determination, all from someone who died right before her 16th birthday. Awful. Her mother and I kept in touch until I went to college, and needless to say, their whole family was heartbroken, but also grateful that she had classmates who still remembered her. It is a tribute to Carol that we still recall her with such fondness. Indeed.
Every year Carole's family would send money to the Empty Stocking Fund in her memory. I would read the list every day to see her name. It reminded me of how lucky I was and of a very sweet and courageous girl.
Louise Gordon Upchurch (Johnson)
Jim Phelps suggested that I post some memories of Carol under her own name...there are other memories of her in a conversation that started on Jim Coker's page.
I believe that Carol Caddellwas the first classmate to die. She was riding a horse and fell off and injured her shoulder. When they x-rayed it, they found cancer in the bones of her shoulder and upper arm. She had her arm amputated, came back to school with a prosthetic arm, and even went to a school dance. I remember her courage in coming back to school, in not giving up, in carrying her own books (with one arm), and someone who is a prince of a person took her to that year's prom! Jane Perrin remembers tutoring her in French so she could catch up with school work after missing so many days of class - and this was shortly before her death. My reaction to that is to admire Carol all the more. Who wants to conjugate verbs when time is running out? She just refused to be a victim. Gotta love that. I hope that I have just half the spunk that she had. What courage and determination, all from someone who died right before her 16th birthday. Awful. Her mother and I kept in touch until I went to college, and needless to say, their whole family was heartbroken, but also grateful that she had classmates who still remembered her. It is a tribute to Carol that we still recall her with such fondness. Indeed.
Mary Mikell (McDonald)
Every year Carole's family would send money to the Empty Stocking Fund in her memory. I would read the list every day to see her name. It reminded me of how lucky I was and of a very sweet and courageous girl.