by Rocky Macy
James Steven Carroll
18 December 1950 – 27 November 2016
My friend, James Steven Carroll, passed away last Sunday
evening at Freeman Hospital in Joplin, Missouri. He had been comatose since suffering a stroke
at his home in Noel, Missouri, on November 16th. James was sixty-five-years-old at the time of
his death.
James is survived by his wife, Patti Gough Carroll, and two
grown sons, Anthony and Ryan. He was a
retired U.S. Mail carrier, former businessman, and had served a couple of terms
as mayor of Noel.
James was unique in that he was known by each of his two
given names, with relatives always calling him Steven – never Steve – and
friends and acquaintances referring to him as James – never Jim or Jimmy. It could get a bit confusing at times when a
mixed group of relatives and friends were present, but James never seemed to
struggle in maintaining the dual identity.
James Carroll and I became friends sometime in the early
1960’s when I was starting high school and had just been employed to run the
projectors at the old Ozark Theatre in Noel.
James was probably in junior high then, though at the old Noel School
the grades 1-12 just sort of flowed together.
He lived with his family in a big house next door to the theatre and
gradually started hanging out in the projection booth when I was there,
learning to operate the machines.
Several years later while James Carroll and I were both
attending Southwest Missouri State University in Springfield, Missouri, we
roomed together at the iconic Kingsbarde Apartments just off of campus (now the
site of the large fountain in front of the university’s main library). Our apartment was on the ground floor and
his sister, Mollie, lived upstairs. When
we moved in we asked the landlord, Willis Jones, if we could paint. Because he planned on selling the apartment
building to the college and knew that it would eventually be torn down, Mr. Jones didn’t actually care – so he told us to have
at it. We painted the main room of the
small apartment dark blue with bright white trim, and covered the floor with a
patchwork affair that we made by gluing carpet samples to bed sheets. The project was planned by James, one of the
early examples of his emerging creativity.
Our apartment was always open to friends, and some of the most interesting people at the university could be found visiting there from time to time. Once a photographer from the school's newspaper, The Southwest Standard, stopped by and snapped a few shots. One of the pictures he took was of James reading a book in the light of an old floor lamp - and that photo went on to be the entire front page of that week's Standard, an issue which promoted studying for finals' week.
Our apartment was always open to friends, and some of the most interesting people at the university could be found visiting there from time to time. Once a photographer from the school's newspaper, The Southwest Standard, stopped by and snapped a few shots. One of the pictures he took was of James reading a book in the light of an old floor lamp - and that photo went on to be the entire front page of that week's Standard, an issue which promoted studying for finals' week.
During that time that James and I roomed together, we were
also co-workers at the Tower Theatre in Springfield where we each pulled shifts
running the projectors. One difference
we quickly discovered between small town movie theatres and those in the bigger
cities – like Springfield – was that while little show houses changed movies
every weekend, the large single-screen theatres of the city usually played
movies until people quit coming to see them.
One of our running jokes was to suddenly quote long segments of dialogue
from The Sterile Cuckoo, a Liza
Minnelli film that ran for more than thirty showings at the Tower. Watching movies over, and over, and over did
get monotonous, and it could be more tortuous than water-boarding!
James and Patti returned to Noel after college where they
eventually purchased the Ozark Theatre and operated it for several years. They had employed my oldest son, Nick, then a
young teen, to sell concessions at the Ozark the night before the landmark
building burned to the ground due to its old, worn wiring. It was sort of fitting that on its last night
of existence, the Ozark Theatre was being staffed by the Carroll family as well
as a Macy.
Living in a river community like Noel helped James to
develop a true appreciation of the outdoors.
Many of my best memories of him were from times that we floated sections
of the Elk River or went on camping trips.
One of those canoe trips occurred on Saturday, June 10, 1967, when we
floated from just below the damn in Noel to Highway 43 Bridge in northeastern
Oklahoma. I know the exact date because
it was the Saturday (the final day) of what has come to be known as
the “Six-Day War” – a time when it
looked as though the young state of Israel might be stirring things up in the
Middle East to where the region would be beyond repair. Much of our talk that Saturday as we floated
the peaceful and clear waters of the Elk River centered on global politics and
the ever-present threat of war.
James Carroll was a well-read and well-traveled individual
who could speak with relative ease on many topics. Though not an overtly religious person, he
was quick to invoke the Christian principles of love, charity, and tolerance of
others.
In trying to focus on what I want to say about the life of
James Carroll, three areas seem to rise above all others: his creative nature, his involvement in the
community, and his dedication to others – particularly family members.
James Carroll had a broad creative streak. He was an art major in college, and paintings that he did during that period of
his life were always on display in the Carroll home. When he and Patti relocated to Noel after
college, his first foray into business was to set up a photography studio, an
enterprise that they ran for several years, and one that gave James constant
opportunities to showcase his creative abilities. One of his projects as a commercial photographer one year at Christmas time was to set up a Santa display at the local grocery store and then take pictures of the little kids visiting with Santa Claus. Somehow I let him talk me into playing Santa, and my son, Nick, who was about two at the time, got on my lap and started telling me what he wanted for Christmas - never realizing who Santa actually was!
James and Patti had an older home situated close to the
river in Noel – a home that his parents had once owned. James was constantly remodeling that old
house. It eventually contained an indoor
swimming pool – the only one that I know of in Noel – and had a brick exterior
that James did himself over the course of several years.
Another area in which James expressed his creativity was in
writing. He penned two fantasy novels
which he self-published – and both Sarren and Sarren
Beryond Sarus were quite good. Patti
served as his proofreader on those projects.
(Sarren was reviewed in this
blog several years ago.)
James also did some work in producing short informational
films. I stopped by his house a few
years ago just as he and Anthony were working on a short film about the
hydrologic (water) cycle, which promotes the idea that the amount of water on
earth remains relatively constant through the natural processes of rainfall and
evaporation. James regarded that notion
as flawed because, he explained, water used in making concrete was lost
forever. He contended that large cement
projects like dams, buildings, and expansive parking lots drain significant
amounts of water out of the hydrologic cycle – permanently. It was something that I had never considered, but it was important to James.
James, the father of Chef Anthony Carroll, also expressed
himself creatively through cooking.
While we were rooming together during college, his signature dishes were
chili (the hellfire variety) and lasagna – and both were delicious! Years later when I was principal of the Noel
School (then a K-8), James was one of our more involved school parents. At a PTA meeting he suggested that we have a
chili supper fundraiser – and then he volunteered himself and me to make the
chili – which we prepared and served to literally hundreds of local school
friends and patrons. As I remember it, we
had two varieties that night, “regular” and “industrial strength,” and both
proved to be quite popular!
Cooking for that chili supper was also an example of James’
penchant for serving his community. Any
time the school had a need, James was one of the “steady Eddies” whom we knew
we could rely on. When a job needed doing,
such as the rebuilding of the school’s playground, James Carroll was there,
equipment-in-hand, ready to get to work.
James painted theatrical flats and set them up for school
programs as well as for amateur productions of our local Elk River Little Theatre. James,
who had experience in running the lights in an off-Broadway production that his
sister, Mollie Carroll, put on in New York City, was also quick to design and
arrange sets for our local needs as well as to operate the lighting. The one area where he was not comfortable,
however, was in appearing on stage. He
could never be coaxed into a performing role.
James Carroll was a literal pillar of his community. In addition to the aforementioned work with
the school and the local little theatre, James was a formidable presence in
city government. As the mayor of Noel,
he struggled to represent all elements of the community and not just the
moneyed interests and the people whose families had been there for
generations. As the nature of the town
began changing with the rapid influx of Hispanics, and then Somalis, into the
community, Mayor Carroll sought to
understand the culture and the needs of Noel’s newest citizens.
I happened to be with James one time when an irate Hispanic
family aired their grievances to him regarding bullies at the county high
school – a subject over which the mayor had no control – but he listened
patiently and offered both support and suggestions for action. He also recognized the resentment from some
corners of the community toward the Somali immigrants who were of a different
skin color and many of whom practiced a religion that was reviled by some
elements of society. In trying to
establish some common ground with the Muslim Somalis, James set and
accomplished a personal goal of reading their religious text, The Koran, cover-to-cover, so that he
would have a better understanding of this significant segment on Noel's population. He took his position as the town’s elected
leader very seriously.
Finally, I would like to stress the commitment that James
Carroll had for others, particularly members of his family. He and Patti took their boys on some
wonderful vacations as they were growing up.
A couple of sojourns in recent years included a trip that James and
Patti and Anthony took to China to visit Ryan who spent several years living
and working there – as well as a family trip last year in which James, Patti,
and Ryan (and Blue – the family dog), drove cross-country in a rented van to
visit Anthony who was living and working on the Massachusetts seacoast.
James Carroll was the youngest child in a family with five
kids. He also became the one who was
nearby to comfort and take care of his parents, a nurse and a mechanic, as they made their exits
from this world, and he acted in a caretaker role for two of his siblings as
they were passing out of this life and into the next. He and Patti were also on hand and involved
in the last days of her parents and one of her sisters.
James Carroll was a man who was always there for
others. He demonstrated how to be a
good person through example and deed, and his many kindnesses are a legacy that
will outlast and outshine the edifices of stone and metal that lesser men have built
to themselves. When it came to being a
good human being, James was the real thing.
James Steven Carroll was the friend of a lifetime – my very
best friend. I will always feel
fortunate that our paths crossed as early as they did, and that I had the
better part of a lifetime to enjoy the friendship and wisdom that James
provided. Rest in peace, Old Friend –
God knows you’ve earned it.
2 comments:
Good Morning Rocky,
I am Diane Tallas now Stroope and for 10 years my family and I lived in Noel, Mo. Perhaps you remember me. You gave me rides on your scooter. I was a Jr. Varsity cheerleader with your sister Gail. And I was a classmate and friend of James Carroll. I didn't know James as an adult and the last time I saw him we were in 9th grade. We moved away from Noel in 1965 after my brother John graduated from Noel High School. I have fond memories of James, he was a nice guy. His parents were very nice people too and I attended parties James had at his house. One party I remember well. We were in 7th grade and James had a record player with 45's playing. He asked me to dance to "Hey Paula" and now I think of James when I hear the song "Hey Paula". He was a nice friend and everyone liked him. What a talented man he grew up to be. I was saddened to hear of his passing. God bless him and his wife Patti and his sons and family. May he rest in peace. Rocky, I enjoyed your article very much about James, thank you for sharing your memories of James. I would love to see a current picture of James. Could you e-mail me one or post one of him on your blog site?
Regards, Diane Tallas Stroope
This is leon louck l went to school with all of u l lived on past school with mom and brother .he was crippled of an auto accident. Anyway i like james he had the mercedes to school ocal a little 50cc honda we live 1961 67 .just looking up people i knew .I.It has hit me pretty hard lot of people i knew are gone We r almost in our 70s life is too short me i have spent in service truck driver.Liked james he was in rotc pretty serious.Rest in peace James Carroll.
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