Joan Carr, age 90, died suddenly at her home of heart failure on January 9, 2013. Born in Havre, Montana on February 27, 1922, she was raised in Sheridan, Wyoming where she spent many a summer at the family cabin in the Big Horn Mountains.
Joan attended the University of Southern California on a DAR scholarship and subsequently the University of Wyoming, where she was a member of Pi Beta Phi Sorority. She met Fred Carr, a petroleum geologist returned from the pacific theatre, on a blind date. (He was smitten when he had to wait for her to return from a fishing trip with her father.)
Joan raised 3 children and infused them with her sense of faith, loyalty, and common sense. She was enthusiastic in family activities of skiing, backpacking, tennis, and swimming. With her daughters married and her son off to college, Joan was able to join Fred and the other empty nesters for lots of bird hunting and fishing trips (with a succession of Labradors.) Joan was a steady contributor to the community.
As a member of Casper Service League she helped establish the first pre-school in Casper. She supported Mercer House in various ways and was active in the St. Vincent De Paul Society as a board member and volunteer coordinator for the Thrift Store. She was a member of St Anthony's Church, The Casper Country Club, The Petroleum Club, The Rosary Group, Town and Country Garden Club, Gourmet, and "The Bridge Club".
She is survived by her children/grandchildren: Martha Oyler of Phoenix, Deborah (Terry) O'Brien of Casper (Erin & LeAnne O'Brien, Kelly & Nick Grudzien) and F. Douglas (Karla) Carr of Billings (Lauren, Robert Allen, Shawn), and 4 great-grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her first husband Maurice Dinneen who was shot down in the early start of WWII, her parents, her brother James, her husband of 62 years, Fred Carr, and her granddaughter, Christine.
Memorials may be made to the Fred and Joan Carr Nursing Scholarship at Casper College, 125 College Dr., Casper, WY 82601 or to a charity of your choice.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated on Saturday, January 26th at 11:00 AM at St. Anthony's with Father Michael Carr & Father Tom Sheridan officiating. Interment will follow immediately at Highland Cemetery.
She will be remembered for her gregarious nature, positive attitude, generosity, and unwavering faith in God.