Carol Spaulding

June 28, 1943 – January 2, 1997

Carol Spaulding Dunbar – 1996

(with classmates Paula Klein Paul, Antoinette Zaccagnini Dupuis, Ely Bloom Clough, and Joni Ford Burke-Dicken)

Carol – 1996

(photos courtesy of Ely Bloom Clough)

Volunteer, mother dies after battle with cancer

Carol A. Dunbar, 53, a longtime resident of Evergreen and volunteer at Mount Evans Hospice, died January 2, 1997.

Mrs. Dunbar was born in Natick, MA, on June 28, 1943. She married William Dunbar in 1966 and in 1968 the two jumped into their 1963 Ford Fairlane and drove to Colorado.

Once in Evergreen, Mrs. Dunbar worked in the Colorado National Bank for 15 years in the loan department. She also raised two boys, Scott and Eric, with her husband Billy.

Friends say Mrs. Dunbar was a very outgoing person who made friends easily. She loved red beer or "beeh" as she said in her Massachusetts accent.

"She made friends anywhere she went” her husband said. "It was what she did.”

In 1992 Mrs. Dunbar was diagnosed with cancer. Even with her health deteriorating, Mrs. Dunbar continued her volunteer work at Mt. Evans Hospice, often bringing in her oxygen pack as she worked at the front desk. "She always came in with a positive attitude even when she was going through chemotherapy,” said Cathy Keiser, nurse manager at Mt. Evans Hospice. "She had health problems, but never complained. She would come in here and lift everyone's spirits. I have never met anyone like her."

Trudy Mauricio first met Mrs. Dunbar in the summer of 1979 when they were co- workers at First National Bank (which later became Colorado National Bank). Mauricio says their relationship became much tighter after Mrs. Dunbar was diagnosed with cancer. "I felt like I really began to know her. Her courage and bravery were staggering," Mauricio remembers. "She astounded her doctors, her family and her friends. She gave out love and she received love in return.

Longtime friend Dee Gerdes echoed many of Mauricio’s thoughts. “My husband died about a year ago. One weekend she called me and told me that she was thinking of me," Gerdes said. "She realized how lonesome I must feel at times. She was caring and kind."

Mrs. Dunbar is survived by her husband; sons Scott of Englewood, Eric of Evergreen; parents William and Dorothy Spaulding of Massachusetts and sister, Irene Zonghi , of Massachusetts.

Services will be held at 10 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 11, at Evergreen Lutheran Church on Highway 73.

Send contributions to: The Carol A. Dunbar Memorial Fund, 2922 Evergreen Parkway, Evergreen, CO, or Evergreen Lutheran Church on Highway 73.