Carolyn Elizabeth Word

Carolyn Elizabeth Word

Mother                Grandmother                          Sister                           Friend to Many

Carolyn E. Word, a long-time resident of Laurel, MD, departed this life on Wednesday, January 19, 2022 at her residence.  She was born in Roxboro, NC February 1, 1943 and was lovingly nurtured by her parents and her grandmother, Cynthia Word.  She was a member of the Person County HIgh School Class of 1961 and attended North Carolina College at Durham (now North Carolina Central University).  At an early age, Carolyn accepted Jesus Christ as her Lord and Savior.  Her church memberships included ushering and singing in the choir.  Over the years she has maintained bonds with her classmates and regularly attended class reunions.   

Carolyn migrated to Washington, DC  in 1965 and met Alonzo Smallwood.  To their union one child was born, Antoinette Janine (Smallwood) Phillips.  Carolyn was nicknamed “Road Runner” because she moved quickly and was always on the go.  She had the gift of gab and would hold conversations with everyone as she enjoyed fellowshiping with family and friends.  Carolyn was an avid sports buff and die-hard Dallas Cowboys fan.  She could “roll with the best of them” by quoting stats and giving you play by play of various NFL and NBA games.  Her other interests included politics, the Civil Rights movement and her memories growing up in the south.  Noteably, she had been an active member of the Order of the Eastern Star of the District of Columbia Grand Chapter. Carolyn faithfully attended family reunions in North Carolina  every August prior to the pandemic.  She was mindful of her family and friends' ceremonious events.   Faithfully, she mailed cards to acknowledge and celebrate her family and friends birthdays, anniversaries, or other celebratory events.  Additionally, she enjoyed attending family cruises, frequenting various casinos, traveling across the country, eating crabs, attending live plays and various bus trips with her friends.  

Carolyn began her professional career with the Federal Government in 1966 and held various Accounting positions throughout her career.  She worked with several agencies including:  the Treasury Department of the Bureau of Public Debt, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), the Department of Agriculture Foreign Agricultural Service, Alcohol Tobacco Firearms (ATF), Federal Trade Commission (FTC), Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC), and the Treasury Department Financial Management Service (FMS).  She retired in 2004 with over 35 years of service.    She later worked as a consultant for Pichler Computing and then at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).  

Carolyn is preceded in death by her parents, Hansel and Geneva McDougal; grandmother, Cynthia Word; sister-in-law, Eleanor McDougal; and nephew Reggie McDougal.  Mourning her loss, yet rejoicing in her purposeful life is Antoinette J. Phillips (Gregory); granddaughters, Adassa Phillips and Assata Phillips; her sisters, Eva J. McDougal, Amy M. Susong (Charles), Sharon M. Isley (Ray); brothers, Hansel “Boone” McDougal, Jr., Reginald McDougal, Bernard McDougal and Cleophus McDougal (Debra); nieces and nephews include Andrew McDougal, Michelle Stevens, Alyssa McDougal, Cynthia McDougal, Emery Susong and Brianna King, and a host of beloved cousins, friends and former colleagues.

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