“You are the light of the world”
“The light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not conquered him.”
Carol Gardner Transou, teacher and leader, has passed away. Her teaching career included 25 years at Science Hill High School in Johnson City. She was Tennessee Teacher of the Year in 1987. In 1990, she received a National Endowment for the Humanities Fellowship for the study of the Vietnam War. In addition to high school education, this led to evening sessions with Vietnam veterans, which were times of mutual appreciation and continued friendships.
She could identify positively with a variety of people: a former student recently said he was known as a problem, but Carol knew him in a new way. She corresponded with friends in Europe and Asia. At the American Church in Paris, she was the obvious choice to introduce the city to the various delegates of the Association of International Churches of Europe and the Middle East. She was recruited by school officials to travel to the Deep South for racial justice and reconciliation. She was an enthusiastic member of the Nashville Women’s Cotillion Club, the Fortnightly Book Club and the Mountain View Garden Club. And then there are happy couples who know her as a “match maker”.
She was born in Nashville in 1936, raised in Brentwood, and attended Nashville public schools. She graduated Magna Cum Laude from Lindenwood University in Saint Charles, MO. At Vanderbilt, she did graduate work as a Woodrow Wilson Scholar (now a teacher and scholar). She studied at American University, Converse College and East Tennessee State University.
She was a member of the Munsey Memorial United Methodist Church, the Philosophers Class, the Monday Evening Book Circle, and the Commission on Church and Society. For several years, she served on the Holston Conference Commission on the Status and Role of Women. She has been active in the ETSU Wesley Foundation ministry and has served as the director and playwright of the theater program.
At the American Church in Paris, she supported Filipino and African associations and the group of multinational couples. In the kitchen, she learned exotic tricks, like washing French lettuce.
She was a board member of the East Tennessee Foundation serving three dozen counties. After careful study, she proposed a Fund for Women of East Tennessee. The Council approved and strong women arose to become Founders. She has been active within Doris Buffet’s Sunshine Lady Foundation, identifying for support works such as the River Ministry for Women, Project Smile for orthodontic care for needy children provided by generous dentists and orthodontists, and the program Red Legacy Recovery for Women.
She supported the International Storytelling Center and Festival where, for several years, she was the gift shop coordinator and volunteer festival organizer.
She is predeceased by: her parents, Howard W. and Alleen Phelps Gardner of Brentwood; her brother, Carl P Gardner (Marilyn) of Brentwood; his sisters, Emma Everett (Charles) of Nashville, Lorene Orr (Ed) of Nashville and Ann Brown of Brentwood; and his nephew H. Michael Jones of Franklin.
She is survived by: her husband, the Reverend Bedford T. Transou Jr. of Johnson City; his sisters, Jane Jones (Leon, deceased) of Franklin and Mary Emily Logan (Bubba) of Brentwood; his nieces, Jeanette Pursley (David) of Nashville, Jean Orr (Glenn, deceased) of Nashville and Linda DePriest (Gary) of Franklin, and his nephews Larry Brown (Michelle) of Van Leer, W. Steve Logan (Jane) of Brentwood , and C. Donald Logan (Susan) of Brentwood.
Carol Transou’s funeral will be held at the Munsey Memorial United Methodist Church, 201 East Market Street in Johnson City. The service will be streamed online on the church’s website, as well as on Carol’s tribute page at www.morrisbaker.com. A reception will follow the service. Masks are optional. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations can be made to Munsey Memorial UMC or the Women’s Fund of East Tennessee, 625 Market Street, Knoxville, TN 37902.
Memories and condolences can be shared with the family through www.morrisbaker.com. Morris baker
Funeral Home and Cremation Services, 2001 E. Oakland Ave., Johnson City, serves the family. (423) 282-1521
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