of Broussard, LA

April 17, 1931 - October 24, 2019

On October 24, 2019, Mrs. Carolyn Fay (Nelson) Griffith, 88, was called home by her Heavenly Father. She was born on April 17, 1931, in Mountain Home, Arkansas, to Jewell (Tracy) Nelson and William Fay Nelson. Carolyn graduated from Mountain Home High School in 1949, and the University of Arkansas, Little Rock, in 1965 with a degree in Education. She taught at the Fort Stewart Elementary School in Georgia before transferring to Sequoyah Elementary School in Russellville, Arkansas. Carolyn was a First Grade Teacher at Nelson-Wilks-Herron Elementary in Mountain Home until retiring in 1995. Carolyn was married to Lee Griffith, Jr., also of Mountain Home for 53 years in a union filled with happiness and humor. Carolyn was preceded in death by her husband, Lee, her youngest brother, Jimmy Newt Nelson of Dallas, TX, and older sister, Virginia (Nelson) Hollingworth of Little Rock, AR. Carolyn is survived by her sons and daughters-in-law, Bill and Beverly Griffith of Orange, TX, and Dan and Vivian Griffith of Katy, TX; her younger brother, Bill Nelson and his wife, Maribel, of Springfield, MO; grandchildren: Michael Griffith, Christine (Griffith) Crifasi, Laura Griffith, Ethan Griffith, Dylan Griffith, and Madeleine Griffith; great-grandchildren: Evan Griffith, Micah Griffith, and Samuel Crifasi; daughter-in-law, Sarah Griffith, son-in-law, Aaron Crifasi, nephews: Scott, Jimmy, Winston and Tracy Nelson, and nieces: Raellyn (Hollingworth) Cockerham, Bronwyn (Nelson) Dowler, and Niesja (Nelson) Plank .

Carolyn was a military wife for 22 years, moving 18 times, but always making a home for her family where ever she lived. She took care of the family while Lee spent two years in Korea and one year in Viet-Nam. After Lee retired from military service, both returned, with great joy, to Mountain Home, Arkansas, the place where they had met in High School.

Carolyn's greatest love was for children and for teaching so it was only natural that she taught Early Elementary Grades wherever she was. She felt that children sensed they would be a success or failure in life by the third grade. She worked hard at the elementary level with other teachers to ensure children had developed some of the basic skills necessary for reading. After retirement, she helped those with dyslexia or other learning needs through the Literacy Council.
Carolyn enjoyed tutoring, gardening, crocheting, and needle-work and was a member of Delta Kappa Gamma. Carolyn dearly cherished the teaching community at Mountain Home. She helped in Vacation Bible School and was a prayer group member at First Baptist Church. Carolyn was grateful for their prayers and letters during her declining years. She was also blessed by her caretakers from Home Instead and Elmcroft Assisted Living that allowed her to lengthen her stay in Mountain Home, and to the nursing staff and caretakers at Camelot of Broussard near Lafayette, Louisiana.

Visitation will be 10:00 a.m., Saturday, November 2, 2019, with a funeral to follow at 11:00 a.m., at Roller Funeral Chapel, 25 County Road 27 (Highway 5 North), Mountain Home with Doctor Tad Rogers officiating. An interment will follow at Baxter Memorial Gardens. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to First Baptist Church of Mountain Home or the Twin Lakes Literacy Council.

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