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July resident of the month



Meet our July resident of the month, Carolyn Randall. She is an avid reader and participates in the Parkway Place book club. In honor of her late husband, Howard, she donated an Optelec machine, a closed circuit TV that enlarges print. Her hope is for visually impaired resident to use it so they can continue their love of reading.

Carolyn is very active around campus. She participates in Wii Bowling and the Parkway Place discussion group. She stays active with the exercise program and enjoys the county bus trips.

Carolyn was born and raised in Champaign, Ill. After high school graduation, she moved across town to attend the University of Illinois, where she earned a degree in English and speech. She met Howard in high school. He joined the army during his sophomore year at the University of Illinois, and returned there after the war. While in college, Howard served in the ROTC and Carolyn served as a Welcome Wagon hostess for returning servicemen and their new brides.

Carolyn and Howard married in 1948 following Howard’s graduation. He worked for Standard Oil of Indiana in Whiting. Carolyn worked for radio station WJOB, writing commercials and briefly hosting her own show about fashion. Carolyn became a full-time homemaker and mother when her daughter, Lynn, was born in 1951, followed by a son, John, in 1953. Howard’s work with Standard Oil took the family to Brownsville, Texas, for two years, where Carolyn worked with the Junior Service League to provide medical and nutritional services to families living in poverty.

In 1962, Howard changed his career, and took a job with International Nickel in Houston. Carolyn became a volunteer and helped found the Taping for the Blind program.

In 1972, Carolyn and Howard bought a ranch near Lago Vista, outside of Austin, where they lived for 34 wonderful years. While Howard kept busy on the ranch, Carolyn went to Austin once a week to volunteer at the State Library, which was the main distribution location for the Talking Book Program. She began the recording program in Austin and wrote the Volunteer Recording Program Procedure Manual to be used by the volunteers. She worked from 1978 to 1987 and became a volunteer again after she retired in 1987.

After they sold the ranch in 2006, they moved to Calistoga, Calif., in the Napa Valley area. They spent five years living on land owned by their son in a forested neighborhood. Through the years, they enjoyed many road trips throughout the United States and Canada. Carolyn traveled abroad with an old college friend and sorority sister. Some favorite trips include Australia, New Zealand and an African safari.

They returned to Houston to be close to Lynn and her family, and moved to Parkway Place in October 2011. Sadly, Howard passed away the following May.

We're thankful for our generous residents who help make Parkway a better place.

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