Good, and kind, and easy to talk to, and I completely trusted my daughter with her all those years.

First of all, I had no idea she had passed on. I will miss her and wish I had a chance to speak to her again before it happened. We had a sweet connection!
She was very instrumental in helping me pull through when I was going through my divorce in 1993. She was always there to help with my daughter, whom I was raising on my own for a few years before I met my current wife, and even when I could not keep up with the bills, she never made me feel uncomfortable or stressed about it. We would sit on her porch and talk many times and I miss those talks…

We went out of touch for about 8 years and I finally tracked her down couple years ago-when I was going through my old files and realized I still had a bit of and outstanding debt to her. I got hold of her phone number and we talked on the phone for a good hour. I was ready to send her the final check and she nullified the debt! I couldn’t believe it. I had pen in had ready to write the check. She simply said- “Just put it towards your spiritual enhancement and that will be plenty of repayment to me”. I almost cried.

I am happy that we at least had that conversation and ended it off so well.
Carry on, Carole…

MML,

Jay R ~ Friend

Love you Carole, and am sorry to have you leave our lives. You will always be in our hearts.

When I was 4, my Mom and Dad pulled a trailer from Springfield, Illinois to Seaside, Oregon. Mom was expecting. We lived in a home with my Lund grandparents. On December 17, 1951, I was blessed with a little sister named Trudy Carole Lund. Mom was giving baby sister a bath in a large mixing bowl. Grandpa Lund was furious and said he would have to throw the bowl away, because they couldn’t eat from it now. Mom told Dad it was time to leave. We left in January for a trip to California. Ended up in Tracy, California. Parked the trailer behind Goldies Feed and Fuel (Mom’s cousin). Goldie said we could have all the ‘dirty’ eggs we wanted to eat. That is what we lived on for awhile. Then in March of 1953, I was blessed with another sister, Cathy Jeanne Lund, born in French Camp, a few miles from Tracy. Packed up again and moved to Sunset Trailer Court in Vallejo. By the time Carole was old enough to go to school, we moved to Broadway Street in Vallejo. By them, I was babysitting and watching my two sisters. I remember them getting into the wagon, tied to my bike, and I would ride them around for hours. Played cowboy and Indian, hide and seek and skated. We moved to Palou Street in Vallejo, where Trudy decided she was not going to be called Trudy any longer, she is going to be called Carole. I believe she was going into the 3rd, maybe 4th grade. I was always amazed at such a young age that she made such a decision. I have found that through the years, if Carole decided to do something, she would find a way to do it.

Audie (Lund) Hartson ~Sister

I will greatly miss my sister Carole. We have had this 3 sister thing going on for over 60 years. It just won’t be the same.

I was so glad when about 10 years ago us sisters all moved close to each other here in Sacramento. Carole and I did a lot together. A lot of packing and unpacking. Trips to Tujunga, and much more. Us 3 sisters all got cancer at the same time. Carole was always there to help anyone when they needed help. She helped nurse me back to health after my operation.

We worked together caring for our parents at home until they passed.

One thing I will miss is playing chopsticks on the piano with Carole. We enjoyed plunking.

Carole was not always pleased with me. While growing up, we shared a room and our mother use to tell us to clean our room. We would show her when we were finished. Then I would get a yardstick out, and reach under her bed and dig out all the stuff that she shoved under there, and say “Look Mama”. I drew a line with chalk down the middle. My grandfather taught us the meaning of work. We use to pull tiny weeds out of the dichondra lawn and fill up an oatmeal box. Each box, grandpa paid 5 cents. Once we reached 7 cents we would get to walk down to the corner store and split a popcycle. We got one every other day. I remember the Christmas we each got a doll for Christmas. That is all we got, and we were so happy for the longest time!

I will truly miss my sister Carole!

Cathy (Lund) Menzel ~ Sister

Carole to me is a very special person because she is one of a kind- she always cared and wanted to know how you were and what was happening. We created musicals out of ordinary life stuff, and we would sing together back and forth in the kitchen like we were on a Broadway stage. We shared our triumphs and sadnesses. She told me that one of my favorite lines that I gave to her was, “It’s just another motion.” She also sang a song to me on the phone a few months ago that I had written and had named it “Dorothy’s song.” What a great friend. I am glad she found peace and love in her family and I am looking forward to playing with her again.
Dorothy Lenz ~ Friend

Though it has been many years since I’ve seen Carole on any kind of regular basis, I will always remember and greatly appreciate her. I was one of the many kids she took care of when she ran a daycare.
Thank you Carole, for providing a fun and safe place for me to spend my early years and for being such a wonderful person.

Christopher Willets ~ A friend

I will always be forever grateful to Carole for all of the years she took care of my two children, when they were young, in her daycare. She was the only one who ever made me feel truly confident about leaving my children with them. It was her caring and loving ways that always shone through her sincere smile and let me know that everything would be okay. Over the years, we became good friends and so did our families. Carole’s sense of humor was another one of her charming qualities that I always really appreciated. One thing I have learned in life is that life should never be taken too seriously—and Carole’s fun sense of humor reinforced this. I know there were several occasions when she made me laugh pretty loudly. Through the years, I have never forgotten Carole’s gifts of caring, love, and laughter. And she must have done a great job in raising her own children when you see how much they love her. I know that Cassie has been at her side 24/7 because those are the kind of caring ways that Carole showed her children and inspired in others.
My family and I will truly miss seeing Carole, that’s for sure. But she will always live in our hearts and we’ll never forget her kindness and all that she’s meant to us. Wishing you many more blessings in a joyful journey filled with the same love that you have always inspired, dear Carole!
Infinite Love,
Jeannie, Billy, Christopher, and Sean (Willets) ~ Friends

I spoke my first words in Carole’s day care!  I had the great pleasure of being in Carole’s day care regularly with my brother, Jason.  Carole, Cassie and Cassie’s kids, Rodney, Brea, Cody and Kevin, were our friends at our “home away from home” for many years.

Distinctly, I remember saying my first words at Carole’s house. My parents were out of town and my brother and I were staying there. I was sort of old to not be speaking yet, but wasn’t talking. (Actually, I was practicing when no one was around, talking only to myself.) But one day, out popped, “I want my bobba” when I was extremely thirsty. Up until that point, I had never even said “momma” or “daddy”.

Carole and her family always made us feel loved and welcome until we moved out of Tujunga in 2002. I will always remember her.

Johnny Freeman ~ Friend

Carol is like a “Good Fairy” in a Disney movie, ALL the children know her and LOVE her. My daughter has many of her most fond childhood memories with Carol. What a legacy, most of us only influence a few “small people” she influenced generations. My family was 1976-1995.

My daughter felt sick when she saw an ashtray in Carol’s Office (which is off the normal traffic of the children -not their space) When I mentioned it to Carol she just acted fast, saying, “well if it bothers her it goes!” then she moved it out of sight. (she “lived LRH data” in respect to children)

Kathie Bishop ~ friend that feels like family

Carole was a very caring, loving and thoughtful person. I was so happy when she found the person she called, “My Joe”.

I am 4 years, 6 months and 21 or 22 days older than Carole. As children, I was usually the babysitter while Mom an Dad went bowling. Sometimes we got a little rambunctious in the house. Mom had a small penguin knickknack with a pointed nose that she loved. I couldn’t tell you how many times we glued the nose back on. I don’t know if Mom ever noticed or just didn’t say anything.

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I used to put Carole and Cathy in a wagon and tow them around on my bike. How lucky were they!!!
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We used to play hide and go seek after dark in the trailer court. What fun.
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I would visit Carole and family in Phoenix once in awhile. Every time I visited, her car would breakdown. One year we rented a car to take the kids on a trip to an oasis type place to swim and get away from the heat. The fan belt broke 3 times on the trip. Once we spent time under the highway in a flood drain waiting to get a fan belt. The last time we were at a rest stop/park. There were warning signs of poisonous bugs. Carole got bit by a bug that looked like a praying mantis. I don’t believe she had any ill affects. When we got our replacement car, we drove home. Never got to see the beautiful river Carole wanted to share.
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I was so happy when Carole and Joe moved to Sacramento. We 3 sisters would go out for breakfast/lunch or dinner once in awhile. Also went to thrift shops and garage sales together. I miss spending time with my sisters.

Love you guy too…

Audie Hartson ~ Sister

Carole always strove to improve – to do better – to be better. She cherished the spirit and human connection and had the understanding and empathy needed for these kinds of connections.

First memorable moment with Carole was 1987. I had arrived from a small town in Canada to the huge city of Los Angeles. Naive but bold I began my journey. My son, Tyson, at the time was 5 years old and I had been invited to an event of which I was told babysitting was available.
Trusting these folks I released my son to them but after the event when I went to get him, I found him in disgusting conditions with no supervision. I will not go into detail but it made my skin crawl it was so bad. I was furious and exploded on the people who had sent my son there. When I was leaving the building of which I had just torn apart half the staff, an older Spanish lady came running up to me and said if you want your child to be safe in a daycare take him to Carole Crest. I had no idea who Carole Crest was but this woman felt genuine and I could see in her eyes she believed what she was selling.

So, I went to Carole Crest’s daycare the next day. The yard was a mess, toys scattered all over, children running everywhere, bunnies, guinea pigs and hamster cages all lined the back of the house. I became concerned and was not going to even go to the front door. I was standing at the gate outside when this tall beautiful woman with long dark hair came out of the house and smiled this warm sincere smile and waltzed gracefully over to us and said Hi, I’m Carole and you must be Lorri and this must be Tyson. Apparently, my rant the day before had preceded me and the Spanish lady had told her I would be coming.

Tyson spoke immediately and asked her if he could pet the bunnies, to which she replied, “Well of course you can.” We spent the entire day there with Carole. We talked for hours about everything and I felt at home there. She was like a kindred spirit to me and realized I had not only found a safe haven for my son, I had also just made my first authentic friendship in LA and real soul connection.

And it would be a friendship that would span the next 27 years and not only would we both end up living in the same town some 5 years later but my next child Keanna would be safe and taken care too and here, I would meet Carole’s eldest daughter Cassie and my friendship with Carole would expand out and into Cassie.

Mother and daughter, more alike than they may have ever realized, I had found lifelong friendships.

I could not see Carole in person as I am far away but I wrote her a letter a few months back telling her what she meant to me and I hope my words and the love they were written with stay with her for eternity.

She will be dearly missed, but I know in my heart and soul, we will meet again.

Lorri Arnason ~ Unrelated Family Member