WILMINGTON — Rose Marie Carlin, 86, passed on from this earth with peace and serenity Monday, March 8, 2021, after a long journey with Alzheimer’s dementia. She is remembered as a humble and kind, charitable and self-sacrificing mother, wife and friend to many.
Rose was born Aug. 30, 1934, in the British West Indies island nation of Saint Kitts. Her family moved from there to Jacksonville, Florida, and then to Teaneck and Paramus, New Jersey, after she was 14. The teenage chapter of her life is marked by her role as right hand to her beloved mother, as Rose was the eldest of six siblings. She helped keep her younger siblings in line, while she learned from her mother many of the family household domestic arts that would serve her so well throughout the rest of her life.
Rose attended Trenton State Teachers College, now called the College of New Jersey. She earned a bachelor’s degree and taught 7th grade history and English for 10 years after graduation. She was adored by so many of her students. She had a true love of learning and teaching that would never abate for the rest of her life. She continued this passion teaching catechism to her children’s church groups and was always the informal educator. Words and grammar were special passions. She also had a lifelong avid interest in gardening of flowers and vegetables and shared widely, always seeming to enjoy it more through the sharing.
After her marriage to longtime sweetheart Owen Carlin in 1968, she retired from teaching and dedicated herself to raising the two children who came shortly after, Thomas Owen and Jeanette Elizabeth Rose. She worked tirelessly and lovingly to support her family and was known for her hospitality with large extended family gatherings on holidays, sumptuous cooking and strict and loving parenting.
She continued to give as grandchildren came along, and loved on her two grandkids, Isabel Susannah and Luke Thomas, especially after moving from Mendham, New Jersey, to Leland. They didn’t hesitate to follow their grandkids’ family move to Wilmington in 2006. They left dear friends and a dream home in New Jersey but made new friends easily and found a life that suited them in their new home state.
Shortly after moving to North Carolina, Rose began to exhibit signs of dementia, and her journey continued almost 15 years until succumbing to it in 2021.
Rose is survived by her husband of 52 years, Owen; son, Tom, and his wife, Susannah, of Wilmington, and their children, Isabel and Luke; daughter, Jeanette, and her partner, Roger Cook, also of Wilmington; four of her loving siblings, Elaine, Liz, Victor and Lila; and numerous nieces and nephews, every one her favorite.
The family would like to thank the many caregivers who looked after her needs over the past decade, and also Lower Cape Fear LifeCare.
Due to COVID-19 limitations, a private memorial service will be held Friday, March 12, at Andrews Mortuary, 1617 Market St., Wilmington.
Rose requested the following, “It is my wish that my resting place will be in the hearts and souls of those who loved me and the caring and goodness they pass on to others along the way of life. Instead of flowers, a coffin, a gravesite, give a memorial in my memory or plant some trees somewhere.” The family invites donations to Lower Cape Fear LifeCare or the Alzheimer’s Association.
Share online condolences with the family at Andrews Funeral & Cremation.
