— Carolyn Sue Southwick was born on September 18, 1960 in Kansas City, Missouri, and shortly thereafter became a part of Bill and Sue Southwick’s family along with Wm. Clay, her new brother.  She attended church with the family at University Christian Church in South Miami, FL.  and made her confession and was baptized there.  Carolyn graduated from Miami Lakes-Hialeah High School in 1978.  As a teenager, and even later in years, she operated a small auto detailing business—Carol’s Car Care.  Carolyn fell in love with John Henry Austin, Jr. and they moved to Vero Beach, FL., where both of them worked at an auto dealership.  It was there that their son, Joshua Kyle was born in 1991.

After struggling as a single mom, Carolyn and Josh moved to Muskogee to be near family.  To get back into the work force, she excelled in courses at Indian Capital Vo-Tech and was hired by Walmart.  She loved the job of stocking merchandise, building displays, and memorized the location and brand names of hundreds of items in the department assigned to her.  Carolyn became so proficient that she trained new employees in the department.  

Carolyn passed away unexpectedly on October 20, 2012.  She will be remembered as an independent soul who loved music, books, camping, and the outdoors.  She made friends easily and had an uncanny ability to put the best possible face on her problems.  When troubled, Carolyn put her thoughts on paper in great detail.  Her sentence structure, continuity, and clarity of thought were beyond that of her education.  The happiness and contentment that eluded her in recent years is now a reality thanks to God’s everlasting love.

Carolyn is survived by her son, Joshua Kyle Southwick-Austin; her father and mother, Bill and Sue Southwick; her brother Wm. Clay Southwick; along with numerous aunts, uncles, cousins, and friends.   If Carolyn would have written this obituary she would have made special mention about her beautiful black and white cat, Oreo; and her “adopted” aunt and uncle, Margie and Robert Todd.

The family requests, that in lieu of flowers, memorials be made to your church or favorite charity.

A memorial service will be 1:00 p.m., Monday, October 29, 2012 at St. Paul United Methodist Church in the Rowsey Chapel with Rev. Mark Jardine and Rev. Greg Boyd officiating.  

Funeral services are under the direction of Cornerstone Funeral Home and Crematory, 1830 North York Street, Muskogee, OK.  Condolences may be sent to the family at www.cornerstoneofmuskogee.com