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Carol Fenton, 77, of Enid, Oklahoma, passed away on June 14, 2025, with her loving husband, Lawson, by her side. Funeral service will be held at 10:00 am Saturday, June 21, 2025 in the Billings Funeral Home Chapel. Interment will follow in Sunnyside Cemetery.
She was born on Sunday, November 2, 1947, in Woodward, Oklahoma, to Scott and Agnes Shuman. Carol was the second of four children and spent her early years making cherished memories visiting her Grandma Carpenter and playing with cousins. One of her earliest loves was a large doll that she dragged everywhere - quite literally - until its feet wore off.
As a teenager, Carol worked at Sonic. One night, when she was just there to hang out with a friend, a dashing young man named Lawson Fenton appeared. She famously marched over to his car in her stylish pedal pushers, feeling cute, and kindly demanded that he turn off his headlights - and perhaps unknowingly, turned on the light to a lifetime together. Carol and Lawson married on September 3, 1967, and remained devoted partners for nearly 58 years.
Carol attended SWOSU and Oklahoma State University before completing her training in medical technology at Mercy in Oklahoma City in 1970. Despite warnings not to become pregnant during her clinical program, Carol laughed in the face of caution - and her daughter Laura made a timely and joyful entrance into the world.
Early married life took the young couple to Wichita, Kansas, where Carol enjoyed becoming friends with neighbors, one of which was duped into helping her husband rearrange the furniture four times before deciding the original arrangement was best. Eventually, the family moved back to Woodward, where Laura finally settled into her own bed, allowing Krista to arrive and shake things up again.
In 1978, Carol and Lawson moved into their renovated farmhouse, a home she lovingly decorated in harvest gold with Spanish accents ("the Spaniards," as she called them). She took pride in her yardwork - until a snake appeared, at which point she would dive off the riding mower with unmatched agility, then refuse to go back outdoors for the remainder of the day.
Of all her jobs, her favorite was at the Fetzer & Meece Clinic as a medical technologist. She adored her coworkers Michael, Donna, and Marilyn. Her daughter Krista enjoyed coming in through the back door and sitting in the lab's built-in chair - at least until Carol pricked her finger to test her iron levels "just to be sure."
After losing her mother at age 35, Carol grew even closer to her father, Scott, spending nearly every lunch break with him - solving the world's problems over coffee and watching The Bold and the Beautiful. She continued living out her compassionate nature in small and large ways: once placing her coat under the head of a collapsed stranger outside Hopkins Shoe Store until help arrived.
Carol loved life's simple pleasures: sewing, reading novels by Sidney Sheldon and Andrew Greeley, shopping for the perfect outfit, and going on long walks at the farm with her daughters. She had a knack for making conversation with friends and acquaintances in the grocery store - much to her children's squirmy exasperation. She treasured her trips to the Canton, Texas flea market to spend time with her sister, Janet. While in Canton she reveled in daring her daughter and niece to flirt with the parking attendants and offer them a bribe of Dr. Pepper in exchange for free parking.
A tender-hearted caregiver, Carol nursed orphaned calves, wounded bunnies, and injured dogs back to health. In the 1990s, while Lawson worked out of state, she even found herself wrangling cattle when they managed to get out of the pasture. She adored family vacations - to Colorado, Hawaii, Oregon, Alaska, the Virgin Islands, Victoria, and Yellowstone. Spending time with her extended family during cookouts in the pasture or her back porch was also a great joy to her. Carol was a fierce champion of children, always ready to spoil and advocate for any little one in her orbit.
Later in life, she and Lawson camped across the country with an RV club. She also ran an antique booth with her cousin Connie, giddily stopping at every garage sale along the way to "restock."
Carol loved a good laugh, especially if the joke was a little inappropriate. She stood up for the underdog, believed in doing things the right way (the first time), and never hesitated to share her opinion - often with just the right amount of sass.
She would want you to live fully, love generously, and avoid lollygagging or piddle-farting around.
Carol was preceded in death by her mother, Agnes Shuman; father, Scott Shuman; and brother, Ray Dean Shuman. She is survived by her beloved husband, Lawson Fenton; daughters Laura Pidge (Mark) and Krista Braud (Andrew); and grandchildren Everett, Kaarin, and Olivia Pidge, and Hudson and Harper Braud. She is also survived by her brother Oral Shuman (Sylvia); sister Janet Winchester (Deryl); brother-in-law Gleed Fenton, sisters-in-law Ann Fenton and Anita Shuman; and many extended family members who will miss her dearly.
In lieu of flowers, the family welcomes memorial donations to 4RKids Foundation or YWCA Enid, two causes close to Carol's heart.
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