Carolyn Libby

A Brief Biography of Carolyn W. Libby:

Born in West Virginia, she loved to travel, and she traveled away from there to Washington, D.C. as soon as she could. She had two older brothers and an older sister and her father moved the family around a lot looking for work, which he could find as a butcher for grocery stores owned by the coal companies. The depression was a hard time for Appalachia. Carolyn and her cousin Mona were about the same age so they were best friends in childhood. Her sister Charlotte now lives in Aliquippa, PA.

Carolyn graduated from Woodrow Wilson High School and took great joy in later years reconnecting with friends and other alumni through the internet. She was especially interested in the marching band and had many good memories of fun times there. "The Music Man" is one of her favorite musicals. She got some good business skills at school and quickly found work as a secretary in the Department of the Navy. She really enjoyed working in an office and she embarked on a long career as an administrative professional.
In Washington she met and married her husband, John Libby, and they had two sons, Jim and Don. John took his family back to Wisconsin when he completed his doctorate and got a job in the School of Agriculture at UW-Madison. He got an opportunity to work on an extension project in Nigeria, so the family moved to Africa for three years in the mid-1960s. She worked as a secretary to the project leader. Caring for two young boys in that exotic setting was challenging, but she was a good mom and the boys had a comfortable childhood. When viewing photos and reminiscing, she often remarked it was a wonder we made it through ok, under the circumstances. Like the time they were driving through the jungle looking for a scenic waterfall, when the car--a Volkswagen bug-- got stuck in mud. She sent the two boys down the road to seek help, and not long after, was relieved to see them come back with a group of workers who lifted the car out of the mud. Only later did she reflect on how dangerous it may have been--quite an adventure.

The family travelled extensively as tourists through Africa, Europe, and Asia before moving back to Madison. Carolyn continued to work while getting the boys through high school. Tragically, she was widowed in 1978 when her husband suddenly and unexpectedly succumbed to acute leukemia. She bravely carried on and spent most of her time working for the Wisconsin Alumni Association. There she got involved with the Alumni travel program, and she was thrilled to be travelling again, even as hostess on several cruises, to Alaska, and Mexico. In her success and good fortune, she remembered her family, helping her parents get out of debt, and taking her sister on the adventure of a lifetime with a Danube River cruise.

Later, after both sons finished college and started careers, Jim in construction and Don in health science and statistical consulting, she became Department Secretary for Endocrinology at UW. Working for a group of physicians that specialize in Diabetes was a very supportive environment as she suffered a long struggle with that disease. Gradually losing her vision, she retired, but managed to maintain a very independent life-style, listening to music, books on tape, gardening and grand-mothering were some of her favorite things to do, but sadly, she missed the ability to travel again.

(See attached photos: Carolyn with her family in Nigeria, 1966 and in Madison, 1984).

Cress Funeral and Cremation Service
3610 Speedway Road
Madison, WI 53705
608-238-3434