Carol R Moran

Carol R. Moran, 84, died on September 5 after a short illness.  The daughter of Gilbert I Ross and Leslie Harrington Ross, she grew up in Rye, New York, and received a BA degree from Vassar College in 1955.  She lived and worked as a social worker in Colorado where she met and married Anton Russ.  They were married for several years and had a daughter together.  After their divorce she returned to the northeast teaching first in Vt, then in Ct. In 1972 she married Joseph Moran and lived in Larchmont NY for 25 years.  She taught in the New Rochelle School system for a decade and after graduating from Iona College in 1982 with an additional degree in accounting, worked for D’Arcenglo & Co. in Rye Brook for a decade.

After her second divorce, she settled happily in the Hudson Valley. Living  in Dover Plains for 15 years where she was instrumental in reestablishing the Dover Democrat Party.  In 2013 she bought a house in Poughkeepsie near Vassar, where she  discovered a talent for engineering and construction and was still involved in renovating it at the time of her death. 

 Ms. Moran was an avid gardener, of both the earth and people’s souls. She had a penchant for seeing treasure in things that most people overlooked.  She could coax the most unusual cuttings to sprout roots in a glass of water on her windowsill.  She read a book a day since early childhood and could often be seen reading as she walked to Rye Country Day School as a child.  Carol had a love for words, and made use of their many meanings to color conversations inventively. She was a practicing accountant and for the last ten years she was active in the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Poughkeepsie, as well as Hudson Valley Home Matters, where she gave of her time very generously.  She was beloved by her wide circle of friends for her warmth, her perceptiveness, her curiosity, and her quirky sense of humor.  

She is survived by her beloved daughter Lia (Leslie Ann) Russ and Carol’s little dogs Jake and Ming (who will be greatly missed on the Vassar Campus by returning students who looked forward to visiting during their daily walks); and by her brothers, Gilbert Ross of of Auburn, ME. his wife Bonnie Ross,  Robert Ross of Fayetteville Arkansas, plus several nieces and nephews, as well as two step children, Clifford W. Moran of Ridgefield Ct. and Douglass Moran of Colorado, and four step-grandchildren. 

A memorial service is planned for October 14th at 2:00pm at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship 67 S. Randolph Poughkeepsie NY.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be sent to either GreaterGood.org, to help animals after the recent hurricanes;  the Regional Hospice Danbury, Connecticut;  or the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship in Poughkeepsie NY.; in Carol’s memory.

To light a candle or leave a condolence please visit Danburymemorial.com

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