Carol was born on February 21, 1933 in Springfield, MO to the late Clark and Myrtle Douglas. She died on Monday, January 2, 2023 at the age of 89 after a long battle with Alzheimer’s Disease. At the time of her death, she was a resident of Magnolia Square Nursing and Rehab.

Carol graduated from Fair Grove High School in 1950. She graduated from Missouri State University in 1964 with a Bachelor’s degree in Education and completed her Master’s in education a few years later at Drury University.

Carol taught elementary school in the Springfield, MO district for over 30 years. The schools where she taught included Hickory Hills, Robberson, Pleasant View, Eugene Field, among others. In addition to teaching, she was also very involved with several professional educational organizations, including Alpha Delta Kappa Gamma sororities, Missouri State Teacher’s association, Springfield Education Association, and Missouri Retired Teachers Association. After retirement, she continued her public service by volunteering at various education-related events.

Carol was committed to and involved with Christian discipleship and faithfulness by way of lifelong dedication and service to her church. She was an organist and Choir Director at Fair Grove United Methodist Church for many years, and later was an active member of the Chancel Choir and the Sunday School Department at First Baptist Church in Springfield. She was also a fine vocalist and a frequent soloist at many Church events throughout her life.

Carol married Dillon Morrison in Sept, 1974 and they were together for 48 years. Their time together was one of real joy. Both Carol and Dillon were often heard to say, “We’ve had a wonderful life.” Although the first 45 years of their marriage were truly blessed with happiness and purpose, the last 3 years did prove quite challenging for both of them, due to Carol’s diminishing health because of Alzheimer’s Disease and the Covid epidemic.

Carol was preceded in death by her husband, Dillon, whose death occurred 3 weeks prior to her own. She was also preceded in death by her parents, Clark and Myrtle Douglas, and older sister, Joy Lee, and by her son, Charles Douglas Beckerdite.

Carol and Dillon are survived by two sons: David Beckerdite and his wife, Sue; Gary Morrison and his wife Brenda; one daughter Belinda Baker; 8 grandchildren: Sonya Morrison, Bethany Jung, Holly Gray, Chris Morrison, Sara Bright, Brandon Morrison, Amy Letterman, and Karen Pestritto; 13 great-grandchildren; and one sister, Sara Burns and her husband, Dale. They also are survived by lots of friends, neighbors, and former students who loved them very much and will never forget them.

“Most of us end up with no more than 5 or 6 people who remember us. Teachers have thousands who remember them for the rest of their lives.” -Andy Rooney

Funeral services for Carol will be Saturday at 9:00 am at the Greenlawn South Funeral Home at 441 W. Battlefield Rd, Springfield, MO. Burial will follow the service at Mt. Olive Baptist Church, 132 State Highway UU, Oldfield, MO.

In lieu of flowers, it is requested that contributions be made to caretolearn.org in Carol’s memory. The mission of the Springfield-based non-profit caretolearn.org is to “provide immediate funding to meet emergent needs in the areas of health, hunger, and hygiene so every student can be successful in school.”