Carol Christmas

Washington, Utah. Carol Joyce Christmas, 64, passed away on July 12, 2015 in Washington, Utah. From Metastatic Cancer. She was born September 9, 1950 in Oregon City, Oregon, to James Howard Dennis and Helen Evelyn Elwell. She was married to Robert Alan Christmas, of Pasadena California. They were married in the Los Angeles LDS Temple on July 12, 1990, exactly 25 years (virtually to the minute) before her passing. Carol died, in other words, although unconscious at the time, at the very moment of her Silver Anniversary of her marriage to her Bob, which she had been determined to achieve, although gravely ill. So she left us with a little message, as she passed to her next life. She knew what day and what time it was. She knew what she was doing all along. Carol is survived by her husband, Robert A. Christmas, of Pasadena, CA, her children, Aaron Johnson, Irvine, CA, Carina Woodmansee, Washington, UT, Jami Dodds, Surprise, AZ, and Jared Johnson, Huntington Beach, CA; and step-children Paul Christmas, Raleigh, NC, Neil Christmas, Schellsburg, PA, Marina Ogden, Round Rock, TX, Ian Christmas, Albuquerque, NM, and Colin Christmas, El Dorado Hills, CA; her sister, Patricia Kruchwitz, Mt. Hood, Oregon, brothers Frank and Ed Smith, Estacada, OR, John Pinard, Clackamas, OR, nephews Jackie and Randy Clark, and nieces Kimberly, Candace, and Florence, all from the Estacada area. And over 20 (we've lost count!) of her beloved grand-children. Sincere apologies to any I may have omitted. Carol grew up on a ten acre farm just south of Estacada, Oregon, tending chickens, pigs, a cow, goats, and running free in the woods beside the Clackamas River. She was the middle-child in a family of eight children, and grew up baby-sitting her younger siblings and her nieces and nephews of her older ones, as well as learning how to keep house and cook for large numbers of family and hungry loggers working in the mountains around Mt.Hood. She graduated from Estacada schools, but her deepest interest was in religion, which made her sort of a “white sheep” in her down-to-earth and somewhat rowdy family. As she grew she would often go into the woods to pray, and as a teenager she sampled the various churches in the area searching for something that “made sense,” in terms of what she read in her Bible, but without success. One day, two Mormon missionaries came into Estacada looking for folks to teach, and they happened to stop at the gas-station where one of her brothers worked. He wasn't interested, but he suggested they go down the road a ways and look up his little sister, who he said was a religious “fanatic” who was always snatching cigarettes out of fellows' mouths and telling them not to smoke. These Elders managed to find the little farm, and Carol; and after a few lessons, and some hard questions from her, she felt the Spirit and they had a new “convert.” And after a lot of pestering her mom agreed to let her be baptized. But even before that, Carol began what was to become a lifetime of missionary work for the LDS Church. She shared her new-found “testimony” with her childhood friend Bonny at school one day, and Bonny also ended up joining the Church, and over the years has herself served as a Relief Society President, Gospel Doctrine teacher, and in many other callings. Carol's special calling appears to have been always missionary work. People and their problems. Service. Finding the singles mates. Patching up marriages and consoling the divorced. In other words, sharing her faith in the Restoration of the True Church in the Latter-days while at the same time “binding up the broken-hearted.” Divorced herself, she knew first-hand the struggles single-parents have raising children and starting over. Compassion was Carol. Bob Christmas and Carol married in 1990 and combined her four and his five children. During the 90's they took the family to the Hill Cumorah Pageant twice, where they all served a mini-mission as actors during two summers. On the way back and forth in their ancient Winnebago motor-home they stopped at Nauvoo and Kirtland for additional faith-promoting experiences in Mormon faith and history. During the 90's Bob and Carol also started selling Real Estate in the Provo/Orem area, where they became quite successful. Carol was Rookie of the Year at ERA Mountainland in Pleasant Grove, Utah for her sales, and Bob, an ex-college English professor became Carol's licensed assistant, so to speak. They were in Real Estate together or more than 20 years, and had many wonderful clients while they finished raising their children. After the turn of the century they semi-retired and began serving missions for the LDS Church, first in the California Riverside Mission (2001-2002), then in the Switzerland-Geneva Mission (2003-2005), and finally in the Brussels-Belgium Mission (2008). Carol's work in these three missions became legendary, although she never thought of it in that way. She just did on her missions what she'd always done—served, taught by example, counseled lovingly and forthrightly, and sacrificed on a daily basis to bring souls to Christ and repentance, so that they could find happiness by aligning themselves properly to Heavenly Father's Great Plan of Happiness, His Plan of Salvation. Simple work to talk about, but difficult to achieve without the “pure love of Christ,” which Carol Christmas, exemplified in everything she did or said. Not everyone liked her style—she could be confronting and relentless when necessary—but it was effective; and today there are dozens of individuals and couples and children in Europe and America who can testify of the positive impact she made on their lives and families. Managing apartments on her California mission she made sure that even the most disorderly Elders got their cookies; when all else failed in Switzerland she made huge pots of soup every Sunday for the hungry members and investigators who came from long-distances to church; in Belgium she found a young boy who needed grandmother and grandfathering, and a “brebis perdue” (lost lamb) that she went back and rescued years after her mission ended, and counseled literally until the day she died. Carol did all this without in the least neglecting her own children, step-children, grand-children and husband, Bob, who unitedly rise up today, and in spite of our very real differences and problems, here and there, and now and then, CALL CAROL CHRISTMAS BLESSED. Due to the necessity of 24/7 care during the last weeks of Carol's life, we had a family funeral with friends at home as we went along. In fact we had several, with our beloved Carol, unconscious but in attendance at them all, and they were each one special and spiritual. At the end we had no strength for anything formal, at the church. Several family members, having sacrificed large amounts of time far away from their families to be with Carol, needed to go home. So we're having a little, informal, gathering at the Serenity Funeral Home, to share some memories and pictures of Carol's life. After six years of assisting her in her valiant struggle with cancer, it's the best we can do. We thank all who read this for their understanding, love, prayers, thoughts, their many tributes from far and wide on facebook. God bless you all for allowing Carol Christmas to be part of your lives. Special Thanks to the Zion's Way Hospice team, for their skill and professionalism, and to the members of the Washington Fields 13th ward, who kept us so well fed right to the end, and sustained us with their faith, prayers, and love. And to the countless medical doctors, hospitals and their associated personnel, and the Alternative Medical people and their facilities who contributed to Carol's care over the many years required for her treatment. We can't thank you enough. We will never forget the quality of your care and your overall concern for Carol's welfare. God bless you all, and your families. A graveside service will be held Wednesday at 10:00 a.m. at the Washington City Cemetery. Family and friends are invited to share condolences online at www.SerenityStG.com Arrangements are under the direction of Serenity Funeral Home of Southern Utah, 986-9100.

Carol Christmas

September 9, 1950 - July 12, 2015