Carol Ann McElroy Crowninshield was born on the 6th of July 1941 to Emerick Readman McElroy and James Ransom “Mac” McElroy, Jr. in Biloxi, Mississippi. She graduated from Biloxi High School in 1959 and earned a Bachelor of Arts in English from Mississippi University for Women, graduating a year early in 1962. Upon graduation, she taught middle school English in Pensacola, Florida. 

Carol was an avid swimmer. While in college, she was a member of the W’s synchronized swimming team, worked as a lifeguard at several Biloxi hotels, and, later in life, enjoyed water aerobics and swimming laps at the Biloxi Natatorium. She also enjoyed playing the piano, singing, and theater throughout her life. 

To return to teaching when her children were older, Carol earned her certification in Gifted and Talented Education from the University of Southern Mississippi. She then taught middle- and high-school gifted education classes and English for ten years at several middle and high schools on the Mississippi Gulf Coast before retiring from D’Iberville High School in 1991. 

In retirement, Carol volunteered at the George E. Ohr Arts and Cultural Center, which eventually became the Smithsonian-affiliated Ohr-O’Keefe Museum of Art in Biloxi. She dabbled in charcoal drawing and town theater and continued to swim. She also enjoyed container gardening on her patio and investing her time and energy in her family and a few long-time friends. She was content to live a quiet life of simple pleasures through the arts, family, and faith. 

She is preceded in death by her son Jeffrey Lloyd Crowninshield, her parents James and Emerick McElroy, and her brother Randy McElroy. She is survived by her brother Mickey McElroy (Jane) of D’Iberville, Mississippi; her sister-in-law Pam McElroy of Ocean Springs, Mississippi; her daughter Dawn Crowninshield-Hipp (Christian) of Lexington, South Carolina; her son Wayne Crowninshield (Natcha) of Santa Fe, New Mexico; nine grandchildren, Adrian (Allie), Noelle, and Reagan González of Columbia, South Carolina; Daryn Crowninshield of Brooklyn, New York; Natalie Crowninshield of Dallas, Texas; Amanda Crowninshield of Houston, Texas; Ronny, Tommy, and Ansley Hipp of Lexington, South Carolina. She also leaves behind her great-granddaughter, Selah González. 

Visitation will be held at 10:00 a.m. followed by a memorial service at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, April 12, 2025, at Platt Springs United Methodist Church, 3215 Platt Springs Road, West Columbia South Carolina. A private family burial will follow in Biloxi, Mississippi. 

In lieu of flowers, we ask that memorial donations be made to NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, at www.nami.org/donate or by mail at PO Box 49104, Baltimore, MD 21297