Over the last few years whenever I would go visit my Aunt and Uncle, I would take their portrait. I would see them once a year or so, and they were wonderful sitters. My Aunt meant so much to me and to our entire family. She passed away on Friday March 6th. This image of her that I took 2 years ago is the one her family chose to go with her obituary below. Carolyn, you are an amazing woman and you raised incredible kids, too…to pass on your legacy.
Carolyn was my Dad's older Sister, and my most incredible Aunt. I grew up learning so much about her and she was such a lady to admire...She was full of love and happiness and warmth.
She was always creating and learning, and it taught me so much...her passion that she shared with me of her dollhouses, and her love of antique lace...her costumes and hats she created for her local theater group...organizing the church's white elephant sale...her warmth with family time around the card table at Camp...her excitement for our love of the Monkees and Rocky Horror Picture Show, (driving us to midnight shows!)...her genealogy knowledge of our family and stories of my photographer grandpa...and even her enthusiastic help finding flowers for props at my latest self portrait shoot last year.
Oh Carolyn, I will miss you so much. As I told my cousins and Uncle, I know my Dad and Gram, Grandpa, Uncle Dave, Aunt Marion, Aunt Isy, Aunt Ruth, Dorothy, Brian and others are all together at "Camp" which is also now up in Heaven. You will be playing Party Bridge and Badminton, making delicious Chocolate chip cookies and huge PB & J Sandwiches, and working on your lace until we get to hug again.
“Carolyn Hunter (Pierce) Samonds, of Amherst, MA died Friday, March 6th at Cooley Dickenson Hospital in Northampton, MA. Carolyn died peacefully surrounded by her family.
Carolyn was born September 19th, 1941, in Hanover, NH, the daughter of Margaret (Mapes) and David Reuben Pierce. She graduated from Hanover High School (1959) and the University of New Hampshire (1963) with a major in biology. After graduating, she taught science classes in West Hartford, CT, then moved back to Hanover to work as an electron microscopy technician in Pathology with Professor George Margolis at Dartmouth Medical School. In 1968 she moved to Boston to work at Harvard's School of Public Health, first in electron microscopy, then as supervisor of the primate nursery where she met her future husband Kenneth Samonds, a post-doctoral fellow. While working at Harvard, she studied Art History at Boston University towards a Master's degree.
From 1973 to 1977, she was the Head of the Mission Commission of Trinity Church, Copley Square, Boston. In 1977, the young family moved to Amherst. Carolyn had an avid interest in textiles, particularly lace. She was a lecturer on lace identification and lace making, and she amassed an impressive collection of lace and served as an appraiser of items or collections. In 1987, she served as Guest Curator of the exhibit "Textile Treasures: Lace & Embroidery" at the George Walter Vincent Museum in Springfield. She was a member of the New England Lace Group and a consultant for Lord and Taylor.
For many years she was a costumer for the Valley Light Opera and she was Head of Costumes for the musical "George M" at Exit 7 Theater in Ludlow in 2009. She was a member of both the Northampton and Amherst Historical Societies and the Amherst Women's Club. At Grace Church, Amherst, she served on the vestry and was the chairperson of the St. Nicholas Bazaar for six years. The church's repository for donated items which were distributed to needy refugees, homeless shelters, or home-fire victims was nicknamed "Carolyn's Closet" in her honor. In later years, she worked as a librarian in the Jones Library's Children's Room, the North Amherst Library, and the Munson Library.
In 1993, Carolyn was diagnosed with Alpha-1 Antitrypsin Deficiency, a genetic form of emphysema. She attended several national conventions of the Alpha-1 Association and local education sessions, occasionally as a speaker.
She was the mother of two children; Karen (Samonds) Irwin, a paleontologist and teacher of anatomy at Northern Illinois University; and David Mark Samonds, a federal attorney in Washington DC. In addition to her parents, Carolyn was preceded in death by her brother, Dexter Pierce, her half-sister Dorothy and her half-brother, David Jr. She is survived by her husband of 49 years, Kenneth Samonds, sister-in-law Judy Pierce, daughter Karen and son-in-law Mitchell Irwin of Sycamore, IL, son David and daughter-in-law Megan Samonds of Fredericksburg, VA.
She is also survived by five grandchildren, and several nieces and cousins. A memorial service at Grace Church is planned for mid-April. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Carolyn's name to the Alpha-1 Foundation, www.alpha1.org Memorial register at www.douglassfuneral.com
Published in Daily Hampshire Gazette on Mar. 10, 2020.
