Warner

Carol Marie Colombo Warner, of Zelienople, passed suddenly, unexpectedly, but peacefully on the evening of Nov. 14, 2022, while visiting with and in the presence of her son’s family in Tokyo, Japan. She was born on June 18, 1941. She was 81 years old. She passed as she lived, fully in the embrace of people who loved her fiercely.

Her passing was preceded recently by her husband of 58 years, Larry (Lawrence) Omar Warner. He passed on Jan. 21, 2022. Carol and Larry were family-focused and lived life to the fullest. They were particularly noteworthy for their unending generosity, open arms, and open hearts.

Carol was born to Charles and Mildred Colombo in 1941 in Fairborn, Ohio. She was the eldest of two children, big sister to Ann, and as an adult, stepsister to Donald and David Smith.

In 1962, while working a summer job at Wright Patterson Air Force Base, Carol walked into the office one day only to discover a group of folks hovering around her desk. On top of that desk sat a very confident and handsome young man. Serendipity being what it is, a once-shy Carol eventually married that young man, Larry.

After she graduated from Ohio State University, and Larry from Ohio University, they lived and worked in Columbus. There, they became parents to Eric, Todd and Kristen. In 1974, they ran the border and settled in the Pittsburgh region — rural Hookstown, Beaver County — where they raised their children to be avid Steelers fans and lovers of everything outdoors. Throughout the years, Carol worked in various microbiology labs, notably Sewickley Valley Hospital and Children’s Hospital in Oakland. She worked a full career, balancing work and raising three kids.

Carol held eclectic and often very intellectual interests. She also enjoyed art in all its forms: from handicrafts to fine art to performance. She played the piano. She loved to quilt. She read heavily and lamented that she just didn’t have time to read “all” the books. In particular, she loved a good mystery.

Carol was the bookkeeper, the assigner of chores, the homemaker, the bread maker. She taught her children the fundamentals of day-to-day living, taking care of the home and garden, the importance of pulling one’s weight, and the wisdom of frugality and budgeting. She required each of her children to play an instrument, passing down her love of music and creative expression.

Beyond music, Carol encouraged her children to participate in the summer chess tournaments at the Sewickley Public Library, encouraged them to read as many books as possible, taught them to sew, and of course, how to cook. She and Larry also loved science and engineering. When visiting her parents, the family would always take a side trip to the nearby National Air Force museum (Dayton/Fairborn, Ohio). They’d also regularly enjoy the symphony, ballet and plays at Heinz Hall in downtown Pittsburgh. Any and every art and cultural festival meant another trip to Pittsburgh. Additionally, she was adamant that her children participate in 4-H, Boy and Girl Scouts, band, and various sports. But for her, academics remained priority No. 1. Always.

When her children were ill, out came the chicken soup, but being a microbiologist, she also swabbed their throats, drew their blood, and cultured their samples herself in the lab. A supermom!

A girl of the “burbs,” Carol eventually developed a love for the out-of-doors from Larry. Every year, they packed up their kids for a two-week camping vacation. Usually somewhere scenic, from Acadia National Park to Disney to the Rocky Mountains, her children tucked away in the back of their green station wagon as they traveled from tent site to tent site — Larry, an outdoorsman; Carol, frugal to a fault. Fun fact: no matter where they went or how far, they always drove straight through, nonstop, to their destination.

Eventually, their children grew up and left for college and beyond. Larry and Carol, deciding it was time to move ever so slightly closer to civilization, left rural Hookstown and moved closer to Zelienople/Cranberry. They compromised — Carol, desiring convenience, and Larry, a country homestead — by staying just across the county border on six acres, technically still within Beaver County. With a stunning view of their neighbor’s farm, they loved to sit in their sunroom and greet the cows as they passed by, headed to the nearby pond. Other visitors included deer, turkeys, foxes and more. Carol, compromise met, would often speak so fondly of the library just a five-minute drive away.

Carol demonstrated a life filled with love, curiosity and humor (so much humor!) Those who knew her well remember her as a lady with an enormous heart and an always-inquisitive mind. She was a people person. She *needed* people. She loved her friends and family — folks who also loved her so very dearly. Carol may have passed on, but she will never leave their hearts. Her legacy lives on in the thousands of people who she has touched.

Carol is survived by her sister, Ann (Ron) Kitchenman; her three children and their spouses, Eric (Miharu), Todd (Monica), and Kristen (Sammy) Rocco; her nieces, Erin Urban and Kara Krill; her cousin, Fred (Ann) Senseman; her sister-in-law, Thea (Don Smith) Hagepanos; five beautiful granddaughters, Stephanie and Madeline Warner, Madison, Gianna and Samantha Rocco; and her beloved cat, Miss Kitty.

Her beloved pup, Brutus, also passed earlier this year.

Carol also kept three “adopted” children particularly close to her heart, Joshua Odom, Megan Pavletic Cardimen and Ricky Laughlin.

They held so many people close to their hearts.

WARNER — A memorial service for Carol Marie Colombo Warner, who died Monday, Nov. 14, 2022, will be held at 1 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 17, 2022, at Hope Lutheran Church, Cranberry/Butler. All are invited.

In lieu of flowers or gifts, her family asks that friends and family consider making a donation in her honor to an organization to which she and Larry dedicated quite a bit of volunteer time, Brookgreen Gardens, South Carolina at https://www.brookgreen.org/memorial-and-tribute-gifts.

However, any charity you choose would please them to no end. Larry and Carol were both supporters of a number of charitable causes and organizations. They’d be delighted if folks donated to any charitable organization and took the time to serve as a volunteer, just as they did.

Please sign the guest book at www.butlereagle.com.