Obituary of Carol de Castro

Carol Laverne de Castro of Eden Prairie, Minnesota passed away peacefully at home on April 3, 2024 at the age of 92.

Carol was born on February 17, 1932, in the small agricultural town of Morris, Minnesota to Stanley William (“Tiny”) Johnson and Ethel Mae (Trapp) Johnson. Carol grew up with her parents and older sister Shirley in Morris and Northfield, Minnesota.

Stanley Johnson opened “Tiny’s Smoke Shop” when the family moved to Northfield. Tiny became a prominent member of the Northfield Community, and the neighborhood youngsters would congregate at Tiny’s. When she was a teenager, Carol worked at Tiny’s (also a pool hall) which helped to foster a lifelong love of sports and games. She was a sharpshooter at pool, an avid horseback rider, an award-winning bowler, an accomplished golfer, and Bridge Life Master.

She attended St Olaf College where she studied Physical Education and met her future husband, Fred de Castro. After marrying, the couple spent a brief time at Ft. Bragg in North Carolina while Fred was in the US Army and Carol taught school. They, along with their four children, lived in many places over the years, including Waukesha, Wisconsin; Harrisburg, Pennsylvania; Minneapolis, Minnesota; and Denver, Colorado. After their children grew up, Carol and Fred moved to Kalamazoo, Michigan before retiring in Hot Springs Village, Arkansas.

Carol was a wonderful storyteller and mimic. She regaled her children with stories from her own childhood and brought that time to life in vivid detail. She also had a little black book of hymns and traditional songs that she would sing and play from when her children were growing up, engendering in them a love of music and family history.

Carol always spoke her mind and was known by more than a few as a “firecracker.” Her gregarious and affable nature meant that wherever she moved, she made friends easily. While living in Arkansas, Fred and Carol had a wide social circle, belonged to several bridge groups, and hosted many gatherings at their home. Carol was known by everyone for her vast repertoire of jokes, and she could reel them off on demand. She even performed them before an audience on occasion at various events in Hot Springs Village.

She will be dearly missed by her family, her fellow residents and staff at the Waters of Eden Prairie (who will miss her wisecracking and jokes), and her friends in many states, including her dearest friend, Margaret (Eugene) Skibbe of Edina, Minnesota. 

Carol is preceded in death by her husband Fred de Castro, her parents, and sister Shirley (Roald) Kindem. She is survived by her daughters Dana Anderson, Dawn (Joel) Gringorten, Terry (Andrew Spear) de Castro, son David (Patricia) de Castro, and four grandchildren.

Her children held a private memorial in Northfield, Minnesota. Memorials can be made to the donor's choice.