In Memoriam:  Carolyn Crain

     We are gathered here today to mourn the passing, and to celebrate the life, of Carolyn Crain.  Thank you for coming.  Your presence here today is testimony to how much Carolyn was loved, by family, by friends, and by the community she served.  We will all miss Carolyn deeply, even as we reflect back on the events and achievements of her life.

     Carolyn was born on May 4^th, 1950, in Los Angeles, the second child of William and Mary Crain.  Three more siblings followed.  Carolyn’s childhood, centered in the heart of this growing family, was a lively affair, full of fun and also responsibility.  She loved taking care of her younger siblings, especially twins Marlene and Colleen, five years her junior; but she also took this responsibility seriously, and thus the two main sides of Carolyn’s personality—her love of life and people, and her dedication to duty—were formed at an early age. School brought opportunities to develop new friendships, and by the time Carolyn reached high school, she had created a network of close friendships that she steadfastly maintained throughout her life.  An enthusiastic performer on the Granada Hills High School Drill Team, Carolyn marched and waved and partied her way through the teenage years.

     But she was also a dedicated student.  She read voraciously, and given her organizational skills and meticulous attention to detail, it was perhaps inevitable that sometime during her early teens, she would settle upon the career path that she was to follow for the rest of her life with the relentless determination that was one of her strengths.  She dreamed of  being, and then became, a librarian.

     After graduating from high school in 1968, Carolyn enrolled at California State College Northridge, majoring in history, a popular choice among aspiring librarians.  She graduated four years later and immediately applied to the library school of the University of Denver.  Thus our valley girl, born and bred in sunny Southern California, migrated to frigid Colorado.  Pictures of her from this era show Carolyn, now an attractive and fun-loving young woman, bundled in coats, scarves, and warm gloves.  She stayed two years, long enough to earn her Masters degree, and then returned to the sunshine to begin her distinguished 34-year career in library service.   Starting at the Monrovia public library, she moved on to Redlands when a managerial position opened up in the San Bernardino County library system.  For nine years she served as Branch Librarian at the Yucaipa library, and in due course, several smaller branches, scattered throughout the nation’s largest county, were added to her list of responsibilities. 

     In March of 1979, the fateful Ides of March, as it happened, Carolyn attended a workshop in San Bernardino for supervisors and managers in county government.  A film was shown, and while the lights were out, several late-comers entered the room.  One of them sat down next to her, and when the lights came back on, conversation revealed that Carolyn and the late-comer, whose name was Alan, lived within three blocks of each other in Redlands.  Alan suggested lunch, the offer was accepted, and thus began the relationship that spanned the last half of Carolyn’s life.  Alan and Carolyn were married on July 17^th, 1980, bought a house together, and in due course, December 7^th, 1981, to be precise, their daughter Branwyn was born.  The next few years were busy ones as Carolyn and her husband shared the joy of parenthood, the challenge of work, and the rewards of community service.  Carolyn served as President of the YWCA in Redlands, while Alan served on Parks Commission; both were involved in community fundraising activities.  They took Branwyn on a vacation to the East Coast when she was two, and to Hawaii when she was four.  Life in those days was often hectic, but happy nevertheless.

      In 1987, it was discovered that Carolyn had breast cancer, but after surgery and precautionary radiation treatment, it appeared that she had defeated it, and the family breathed a sigh of relief. 

     The year 1990 brought a new opportunity and a big dilemma for Carolyn and Alan.  Carolyn had long wished to be the head librarian of a city or county system, and such a position was offered to her by the City of San Marino.  Taking the job would mean a move and a considerable economic sacrifice.  But the overall benefits, including job satisfaction, outweighed the drawbacks.  Carolyn moved to an apartment in Pasadena to take the job while Alan, now a teacher, remained in Redlands to finish out his contract for the semester.  The family reunited that summer, purchasing a house in Arcadia, and Alan found employment at Southwestern Academy, a few blocks away from the library and Branwyn’s new school.  It turned out to be the right decision, as Carolyn now had the job she wanted.  It was a taxing job, requiring long evening hours and constant problems with the physical environment.  Simply put, the library building, only 40 years old but beset by serious problems, was a major continuing headache.  The basement flooded, the collection lacked wheelchair access, the heating and air conditioning system broke down constantly, the electrical wiring was not adequate for the digital age, and the staff lacked adequate workspace.  Carolyn rolled up her sleeves and pitched in to make it work, but as the first months of her time in San Marino passed, she began to see what a few forward-looking citizens had already recognized—that San Marino needed a new library.

     Then cancer struck again, and Carolyn received the ominous news that it had metastasized to the bone.  From then on, Carolyn’s life was punctuated by chemotherapy treatments as her doctors tried their best to hold the line.  Carolyn worked and exercised and lived a full life in defiance of the disease raging inside her.  She rarely missed a day of work, and no one had reason to suspect from her behavior that she was seriously ill.

     More happy years ensued as Carolyn and her family established roots in Arcadia and San Marino.  Branwyn progressed through San Marino schools and graduated from the high school in 2000.  Carolyn and Alan, always avid cyclists, began to venture further from home, traveling to London, Paris, Scotland, Provence, Alaska, Hawaii, Australia, Canada, the San Juan Islands, and many destinations within the contiguous United States, exploring as much of the world as they had time for, usually on their bicycles.  They also rode locally with the Foothill Cycle Club on weekends and exercised at their health club most days after work.  They enjoyed weekend visits to museums and art galleries, and Carolyn, an active member of the Huntington Library and the Los Angeles County Art Museum, even took a painting class, and drew scenes from the Tour de France as she watched it on TV.  She and Alan went regularly to Celtic cultural events and classical music concerts.  She belonged to the Thursday Noon Rotary, and attended Sunday evening mass at Holy Angels Church in Arcadia. 

     Most of you know the story of how San Marino raised millions of dollars of private money and built this magnificent new library.  Carolyn was intimately involved with every stage of its development, from needs assessment to design, fundraising, ordering furniture and computers, managing the move to temporary quarters and maintaining  library service in cramped quarters while the old building was demolished, and the new one erected in its place.  The project came through on time and under budget, and was the work of many people.  But by common consensus, the person who did the most and worked the hardest to see the project through was Carolyn.  The grand opening ceremony last January 26^th was the culmination of years of effort, and the high point of Carolyn’s career.  It was a total triumph.  Three times her speech was marked by standing ovations.

The Crowell Public Library is a functional and aesthetic masterpiece, and Carolyn was justly proud of her role in bringing it about.