Obituary of Carolyn Sue Schroder

Carolyn Sue (Lamb) (Crawford) Schroder, 89, passed away in Mesa, Arizona on August 08, 2023, with her family by her side. She was a warm and caring mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, mother-in-law, and, most importantly, an amazing friend and companion to her sons. Carolyn was born at home in Hillsboro, Indiana on September 04, 1933, to Charles Kenneth Goodwin and Flossie Elva (Brown) Lamb. She married Gordon Benton Crawford, and moved from Indiana to Tucson, Arizona, where they raised their three boys. In the 1970s, she parted ways with Gordon and married her soulmate, Gary Henry Schroder. Together they built a ranch in Avra Valley, Arizona, where they enjoyed their horses and the desert mountain sunsets. Carolyn and Gary relocated to Pinetop-Lakeside, Arizona, and their love of the outdoors often led to venturing into the woods in the early morning, armed with a thermos of coffee, to sit on their truck’s tailgate, watch the sunrise, enjoy the quiet forest, and gaze at the wildlife. After Gary’s passing in 1980, Carolyn joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. With her dog Jody, Carolyn traveled the country in her RV, visiting all contiguous states except Maine. She filled scrapbooks with photographs and stories of the things she saw and the people she met. In 1984, she was a housemother for Delta Zeta dormitory at DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana, where the girls adored her and called her “Mom.” Later she lived in Manti, Utah in a house she rented from her friend Ed “Big Daddy” Roth, before finally returning to Pinetop-Lakeside. She eventually moved to Mesa and spent the last decade of her life in her oldest son’s home, securing her legacy as the matriarch of her beautiful family. She gained a passion for genealogical research and spent years completing and documenting family history. Carolyn was an immensely talented woman: she had a career as a draftsman for a mining company, she designed floorplans for the homes she lived in, and she created wonderful works of art through her painting, sewing, quilting, crocheting, wall-hangings, and weaving pine needle crafts. She is survived by her two sons, Gordon “Chip” Benton, Jr., and Geoffrey Brandon, as well as 13 grandchildren, 29 great-grandchildren, and 4 stepchildren. She is preceded in death by her parents, her sister and brother, her youngest son Grady Brian, and her beloved husband Gary. Carolyn was a faithful, thoughtful, selfless, and loving person, with a magnificent smile, who felt great joy in her posterity. She listened to us patiently, laughed at our silly jokes, and never failed to caution us to “Be safe” whenever we left to go somewhere. She will always live on in our hearts and minds.