Carol Shannon Murray

On the morning of February 6, 2016, Carol passed away peacefully in her sleep from natural causes, surrounded by her husband. Carol was 59 years old.

Carol was born in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada on July 22, 1956. She was the first child of Jean Johnston and Dean Sherman Young. She was a very curious and bright child who enjoyed learning new things. Her family moved to Boston, Massachusetts in 1962, where she became a big sister to Donna J. Young. The family then moved to New York in 1965, and then to Atlanta, Georgia in 1966.

Carol was a student at North Fulton High School where she met the man that would later become her husband, John Murray. John fell for Carol the moment he saw her, and even joined the Yearbook committee just so he could have an excuse to take her picture all the time. Carol was a very intelligent and rigorous student who graduated from Clark Central High School a year early. Carol enjoyed playing the piano, singing, and dancing ballet.

Carol married the love of her life, John Murray, on July 7, 1979, at The Cathedral of Saint Philips in Atlanta, Georgia. As John was employed as an Emergency Medical Technician, the couple famously rode away from the reception in an ambulance. Carol was married to John for 37 years, many of which she credited to John's ability to always make her laugh and treat her like a queen.

She attended Georgia State University and then transferred to Kennesaw State University. There, she graduated with a Bachelor's of Science in Education in 1981. She began her teaching career in Cobb County Public Schools in 1995. She started teaching at Chalker Elementary School in Kennesaw, Georgia in 1998, teaching second grade, and remained then until her passing. June 2016 would have been 20 years that she had served with Cobb County as a school teacher.

John and Carol welcomed their first child, Amanda, on December 30, 1984. They welcomed their second child, Phillip, on October 3, 1989. Carol was a devoted and loving mother who used her love of arts and crafts to find exciting ways to educationally challenge her children, who both went on to become university graduates. She took great pride in calling herself a mother of two and always put her family first. Her family will tell you that they could not have asked for a better wife and mother.

Carol loved animals, nature, going to the beach, sewing, crafting, painting, and reading. She enjoyed frequenting the Yellow Daisy Festival at Stone Mountain Park with her best friend and co-teacher, Karen Severin and she was always found with her Kindle in-hand. Carol loved to sing and her voice was always heard throughout the home singing her favorite songs from the 1960s and 1970s. She loved to laugh and will always be remembered for being so kind and caring, with a big heart for others.

Carol is survived by her husband, John M. Murray, of Marietta; daughter, Amanda C. Murray, of Dacula; son, Phillip M. Murray, of Woodstock; father, Dean S. Young and mother, Jean J. Young, of Tucson, AZ; sister, Donna J. Young, of Tuscon, AZ; niece, Jennifer Young, of Tucson, AZ; several uncles and aunts; forty-two first cousins; numerous school colleagues; and many current and former students.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to the Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) program at Chalker Elementary School, her place of employment. Checks can be made out to: The Chalker Elementary School Foundation. Payments can be made by contacting Chalker Elementary at (678) 494-7621. Carol had expressed how she felt this program would be an important asset to the students, and wished she could have personally donated.

Funeral services will be held on Saturday, February 13th at 2pm in the chapel of Marietta Funeral Home.  The family will receive friends on Friday, February 12th from 6-8pm and on Saturday, February 13th from 1-2pm prior to the service at Marietta Funeral Home.

Special thanks to the Marietta Funeral Home for their preparations, and their owner and director, Chuck Johnson, who has been a personal friend to John and Carol for many years.

Family condolences and personal comments can be made to Marietta Funeral Home on their website at http://www.mariettafuneralhome.org/sitemaker/sites/COLLIN1/obit.cgi?user=91729807_CMurray where it can be viewed by the family.