Obituary of Carol Marlene Downing

 

Carol Marlene (Lobert) Downing

1934 - 2021

 

Carol Downing, "The Shady Lady", passed away November 8th, 2021. No specific disease took her away from us, only time. 

 

Carol owned and operated Carol's Lampshades in Richfield and South Minneapolis for over forty years, making custom lampshades to order for customers throughout the Twin Cities, the upper midwest, and eventually the whole country. If you ever brought a lampshade to a local store (such as Michael's on 50th and France) for recovering, they farmed the work out to Carol. She was the only one in town that did it.

 

Born and raised outside of Chicago, Carol moved to Minneapolis when she was 18 to pursue a high school boyfriend who later became her husband. After her husband passed away in 1969, she opened a gift shop which later evolved into her custom lampshade business. Carol was a single and self-employed single parent to her only daughter Angela. Money was always tight, but there was an abundance of love in the house. The lampshade shop made for an engaging environment for her daughter as a child; Angela grew up surrounded by creativity and watching her mom make beautiful things. When Carol wasn't sewing lampshades she was still wielding a needle with her favorite hobby, counted cross-stitch.

 

Carol's artistry when it came to lampshades was second to none, and her reputation grew amongst the local design scene. She worked and worked and worked, dutifully unlocking the door on her little shop five days a week. She rarely raised her prices or took a vacation.  In January of 2015, while working at the shop, she fell and broke her hip forcing her to suddenly close her beloved lifetime business. Several years later, Carol was diagnosed with major heart problems and went through open-heart surgery. She eventually ended up at Walker Methodist Health Center in South Minneapolis at first for temporary care, but eventually permanent living on the 7th floor, with a window overlooking south Minneapolis.

 

Mom's happiness and kind nature were natural for her. The nurses at Walker Methodist loved her generous spirit and cozy room filled with her beautiful stitchery, paintings and handmade lampshades. Even during the staff shortages of late, they fought over who got to take care of her. They knew they would feel the love and happiness in her room. Unable to bake cookies anymore, she would offer them some of her Hershey's chocolate kisses instead.  Carol genuinely loved and appreciated the people who took care of her. She would often ask them how their day was going; even in the nursing home, she was always thinking more of others than of herself. 

 

Carol taught us that kindness matters. That you can be the positive person in the room, and that through being good to others, they will be good to you.  She taught us that love is more powerful than anything else.  She was not so much "The Shady Lady" but "The Sweet Lady", and she will be greatly missed. 

 

Take care of each other. Take nothing for granted. Use the time you have wisely.

 

Carol is survived by her daughter Angela Kallsen, son-in-law Jason, and grandson Spencer.

 

A Memorial Gathering will be held Monday, November 29th, 4:00 pm - 7:00 pm at Cremation Society of MN, 4343 Nicollet Avenue South, Minneapolis, MN 55409