Carol Grace Furtado

Carol Grace Furtado died at home in Yreka on Thursday, May 12, 2016, at age 89. Carol was born in the screened-in porch at her family home on a hot day in Yuma, Ariz., to Allan and Dorothy Miller. She grew up in that town with her four siblings climbing trees and playing in sand dunes or with her dog, Happy. She attended Yuma High School and never forgot the school song: “Fight Criminals, fight, for the blue and the white.” She dropped out of school in 1943 at age 17 to marry Floyd Hardin “Red” Anderson, who she had met at her job as a “soda jerk.” While her husband was in the Army, Carol worked as a “Rosie the Riveter,” helping to build airplane engines. After World War II, she enjoyed being a housewife but taught herself to drive because she wanted to go places. They had one daughter, Carolyn Anderson. Carol moved to Yreka in the 1960s because her second husband was working on the construction of Interstate 5. Later, she lived on a cattle ranch in Grenada and kept chickens and probably too many cats. She held various jobs over the years, including telephone switchboard operator and clerk at Drive-N-Save. Carol was also “the Avon lady,” something her mother had been as well. Carol sold the products with passion and skill for more than 50 years and in the mid-’80s was named “The Best” in her district and had her picture in the Siskiyou Daily News. She volunteered weekly at the Siskiyou County Museum for many years, cataloging items for its collection. Getting together with friends was Carol’s favorite pastime at all stages of her life, from snowmobiling and fishing to riding with the Brush Buggy Club in parades. Carol said her prayers every night. She wrote poems in birthday cards. She believed “pretty is as pretty does,” cooked a few things really well, loved decorating for holidays, and would read anything about the Kennedy family. She could solve the Wheel of Fortune puzzles before you. Carolyn took her on several epic trips, including to Graceland because of Elvis and to Palm Springs because Carol had always wanted to go there. She most anticipated the annual Miller family reunion in the Pismo Beach area. In Carol’s later years, she looked forward to bingo night at the Elks Lodge, pinochle, dining out, delivery of her weekly People Magazine, new seasons of Dancing with the Stars, watching birds at the feeder, and the stack of mystery novels in her to-read pile. Her favorite country singers were Tim McGraw and Blake Shelton. She was famous on Facebook. Most of all, Carol loved visits with her grandchildren; each was her favorite. She taught them to play poker, solitaire and crazy eights, but to pick a number besides eight so as not to be boring. A few days before her death, she celebrated Mother’s Day at Turtle Bay Exploration Park in Redding, feeding birds with her 11-year-old great-grandson. Despite diabetes, multiple heart events, and broken bones, Carol survived the last few years due to sheer stubbornness. She recently said, “I’ve had a great life” and believed that people died close to their birthday. Accordingly, she almost made it to 90. Carol outlived her husbands and was preceded in death by her sister Marilyn Marshall and brother Allan Miller. She’s survived by her older sisters Jewel Garcia of Santa Barbara and Jean Trainer of Downey. Also missing her are her daughter Carolyn Anderson of Yreka, granddaughter Devanie Angel of Chico, grandson Jordan Anderson of Arcata, great-grandson Alec Angel of Chico, and many nieces and nephews. No services are planned other than a small graveside gathering of immediate family at Evergreen Cemetery, where she will be buried alongside her third husband Frank Furtado.

Carol Grace Furtado

June 22, 1926 - May 12, 2016