Mary Golson Obituary

Carolyn Ward Golson, age 86, of Greenville, AL, passed away on Wednesday June 25, 2025, with immediate family surrounding her.   Her sweet and kind spirit will live on in all who knew her. 

Funeral Services will be held on Sunday, June 29, 2025, beginning at 11:00 a.m. in the chapel of Dunklin Funeral Home.  Burial will follow in Myrtlewood Cemetery in Fort Deposit.  The family will receive friends for visitation beginning at 10:00 a.m. until service time.

Carolyn was born on December 3, 1938, to John Albert and Edna Rhodes Ward. She graduated from Greenville High School in 1955, attended University of Alabama the following year, then married Leon Golson, Jr (Leonie) and moved to Fort Deposit, AL to raise their family.  She later graduated from Auburn University at Montgomery in 1993, after which she became a high school mathematics teacher in Lowndes County Schools.  

Carolyn was known for her bright blue eyes and big smile, gentle, kind spirit, and occasional spunk.   She was an avid reader, bridge player, and traveler.  She was a cherished member of the Fort Deposit Church of Christ where she taught Sunday School among other activities.

She is preceded in death by her husband of almost 55 years, Leonie Golson, her parents John Albert and Edna Ward, her brother Bobby Ward, her sister Virginia Ward Stabler.   

She is survived by her four children, Rachel Paulk (Johnny),  Rebecca Callen (Malcolm), Elizabeth Smith (Robert), and Lee Golson (Nelson); her sisters Margaret Kneisel (Craig), and Ann Williams (Stan);  twelve grandchildren, Noelle McNeil (Brian), Heather Paulk, Daniel Paulk (Crystal), and David Paulk (Sara);  Ben Callen (Kallie), Aaron Callen (Amy), Andrew Callen (Miranda), Adrianne Senn (Seth), Laiken Golson, Lyric Tillery, Logan Tillery (Maddy), and Lacey Tillery;  twenty great-grandchildren; and a host of nieces and nephews.  

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to the Alzheimer's Association at Alz.org