Carolyn Martin's Obituary
Carolyn Merrill Martin passed away at the age of 89 on November 13th, 2024. She was the daughter of Dr. Marriner Wood Merrill and Claire Louise Hulme. With her former husband, James Cullens Martin, she was the mother of Emily (Robert) Miers, Sarah (Andrew) Stockton, and David (Trulie) Martin. Carolyn also had eight grandchildren and fourteen great-grandchildren.
Carolyn and her twin brother Craig Merrill were born in Logan, Utah on July 7th, 1935. Along with their older sister, Claire Louise, they grew up in Phoenix, AZ. After high school, Carolyn earned a BA in church history at Wellesley College in Massachusetts. Married at 19, she served in her husband's church for several years after college. After moving to California with her husband and young family, Carolyn earned an MA in psychology at Pepperdine University and later, after she and Jim parted ways, she went on to earn a PhD in clinical psychology at Fielding Institute. She was a dedicated psychotherapist until she retired in her 70's.
Carolyn moved from Southern California to Berkeley in 1984, where she was a beloved member of the First Congregational Church of Berkeley for over forty years. She enjoyed taking ASL classes, her meditation group, going to art museums, reading poetry, mysteries, literature, and literary criticism magazines, and going for walks at the marina. She loved living in Berkeley, and most of all she loved her family and friends, as they loved her. She will be greatly missed by all.
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