Roll Call Tribute

Carolyn E. McDaniel
July 14, 1943 - December 16, 2021

Carolyn Elizabeth McDaniel was born in Raleigh, North Carolina on July 14, 1943 to Ezra Weiss McDaniel and Elizabeth Rowe McDaniel. Shortly thereafter, she and her mother returned to McGregor, TX, to live in her maternal family's home while her father served in the Navy during World War II. They remained there after his service where Carolyn attended the McGregor schools through high school while working in her father's restaurant there. After graduating, she briefly attended the University of Texas at Austin before entering the workforce, including high-end ladies' fashion in Austin, Bell Helicopter in Dallas and as a local travel agent.

While attending a Texas A&M football game, Carolyn met Dr. Milton McDaniel and they soon began dating and fell in love. They were married on December 21, 1967 and Carolyn moved to Bryan where she resumed her education, graduating from Texas A&M with a BA in Elementary Education followed by her MA in Library Science from Sam Houston University. Armed with the knowledge and skills these degrees conferred, she began teaching in the Bryan schools, beginning in Bowie Elementary, then moved over to the position of Elementary School Librarian, in which role she served for eighteen years until she retired from Bonham Elementary in 2010. Though they had no children of their own, through her tireless efforts to make reading come alive, Carolyn's impact in the lives of thousands of children and adults across the Brazos Valley was immense and lifelong.

Carolyn shared with Milton a passionate love of Jesus Christ her Savior, and sought to show that through her dedicated service to her local churches, first St. Paul's UMC in Bryan then Christ UMC in College Station, where she regularly sang in their choirs, attended Sunday School and Women's Bible studies, and supported various local ministries and overseas missions. Carolyn was a member of numerous local organizations and supported a number of charities, including Brazos Valley Symphony Orchestra, The Woman's Club, Brazos Valley Retired School Personnel, Bryan-College Station Newcomers Club, as well as served as a Docent at the Bush Library for many years. She and Milton established scholarships in their names at Texas A&M in the colleges of Education and Agriculture.

Epitomizing all the best characteristics that could be found in a true Southern Belle, Carolyn loved to entertain and was well-known for her lavish meals, which she insisted on cooking herself. She loved to travel, having been to South America, Australia, Europe, Canada and the Holy Land as well as from coast-to-coast across her own beloved US.

Carolyn is preceded in death by her beloved husband and parents, and is survived by her maternal cousins Robert Lyon (wife Judy), William Lyon, and Gayle Eidson (husband James), her "Family of Choice" (David and Carol Pope, Robert and Stephanie Pope and son Evan), and innumerable children whom she loved and encouraged throughout her years in the classroom and library.

A Memorial Service will take place at Christ United Methodist Church on Thursday, January 6, 2022 at 11:00 a.m. Graveside services will take place the same day at Evergreen Cemetery in Woodway, Texas at 4:00 p.m.

In lieu of flowers, charitable donations may be made to:
Hospice Brazos Valley
Christ United Methodist Church
Brazos Valley Symphony Orchestra
George and Barbara Bush Foundation
Texas A&M Foundation