Carol Kyle

Carol Jean Beckman Kyle was born on May 1, 1940, in Youngstown, OH and grew up in Santa Barbara, CA. Carol was known for her beauty and stunning eyes and in her youth resembled Elizabeth Taylor. As a Rainbow Girl, cheerleader and tennis player Carol was very active in school graduating Valedictorian of her class in 1958. Quite the dancer, she received a first-place trophy as “Best Dancer” in a jitterbug dance contest to Creedence Clearwater Revival’s Proud Mary. Although she always longed to be a nurse, her father fell ill and having such a close relationship with him, Carol dropped her nursing plans to be by his side. Love soon took hold of Carol’s heart and it wasn’t long until she was engaged to be married. However, in her early twenties, she lost her first love and fiancé in a car accident. Carol met Richard Kyle and they were married in 1971 in Vancouver, WA where Carol’s daughter Charlotte was born later that year. Carol divorced Richard in 1974 and later met Fred Cain to whom her second child Eric was born in 1979 in Salem, OR. While battling depression and an undiagnosed mental illness, Carol along with Fred and the children, were homeless for two years. Living in their car and in parks and shelters, the family traveled through Oregon, California, Idaho, Nevada, and Utah before settling in Denver, CO in 1981. Carol’s last contact with Fred was in 1985. In 1984 Carol was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis and within five years found herself in a wheelchair losing all lower feeling and mobility. By 1991 Carol was in a nursing home where she lived the rest of her life. Ironically years prior to living in one of the nursing homes, she used to volunteer and play piano there while her daughter Charlotte, an actress, would sing and dance for the residents. Due to her mental illness and inability to function normally as a mother, there was a period of time where Carol was estranged from her children. However, in 1997 her son Eric reunited with his mother and helped bring the family back together. Her daughter Charlotte maintained periodic contact with Carol throughout. During the last four years of Carol’s life, her children Eric and Charlotte rekindled their relationship with one another and visited Carol as often as they could. Carol was an avid animal lover and domestic violence prevention advocate, having been a victim herself. The 1950s and 1960s “Oldies” music was always her favorite. And if you ever needed to borrow a pen, well, Carol collected them and had plenty, thousands. Yes, she was stubborn and sometimes ornery but in the end, she was known as a sweetheart to all those blessed enough to meet such a strong and courageous woman as Carol. Carol made her transition on January 12, 2012, in Denver, CO with her son Eric by her side.