Connie loved family and people in general, especially children, and dogs. She loved to travel, visiting 40 U.S. states and 25 foreign countries and islands. Constance Joan Carman, age 87, of Thousand Oaks, California died at home of Congestive Heart Failure on April 20, 2024 in Hospice care.
She was born in Hutchinson, Kansas in 1936 to Charles Robert and Mildred Welty, who were very loving farm people. She was surrounded with three generations of Weltys locally and many more relatives within Kansas. As a young girl she was a tomboy, but outgrew this trait. When her bother, Steven Robert Welty came along in 1945, a lifelong close bond was formed that was very dependable until his death in November 2020. His death had a very strong and lasting impact on Connie and her will to live. Her love of animals came from her farm experiences. Connie attended High School in Nickerson, Kansas from 1950-1954 before studying Elementary School Education at Fort Hays State College in Kansas, graduating in 1958. She became a public-school teacher in 1958, teaching in Prosperity Grade School in Hutchinson, Kansas. She moved to Los Alamos, New Mexico in the early 1960s and did teaching there as well. She loved Los Alamos and developed many long-term friendships there. She also looked forward to driving back to Kansas to see her family.
While previously married Connie met the love of her life, Robert (Bob) Carman in 1974 at a Parents-without-Partners (PWP) meeting in Los Alamos, in which Connie was the president. Quickly Connie and Bob bonded, becoming soul mates in which they could sit quietly next to each other and without speaking and know what the other was thinking. They were married in the United Methodist Church in Los Alamos on May 2, 1975. She died just two weeks short of 49 years. They lived the beginning of their marriage in White, Rock, NM until April 1984 when they moved to Thousand Oaks, CA. Connie loved living in California and in the specific house we had, as long as she could visit her family in Kansas.
Connie and Bob both had daughters from a previous marriage. Connie’s daughter was Jennifer Lynn Bivins Gillespie, 1964, and she lived with Connie and Bob until she went to college in 1982. Connie and Jennifer enjoyed clothes shopping and going out for lunch where Connie typically ordered lox and bagels as often as she could. Connie and Jennifer also enjoyed grocery shopping and cooking meals together. They attended church together at the United Methodist Church in Los Alamos. Connie loved to sew and even made Jennifer a pink ice-skating dress which Jennifer loved to wear to the skating rink. They made many trips to the farm in Hutchinson, Kansas and loved the time they spent with their family there.
Bob’s daughter, Yvonne Norris Carman Novak, 1968, lived with her mother during the school years and with Connie and Bob during the summers. Both girls traveled with them on summer trips. Yvonne and Connie had lots of belly laughs over the years whether it was going shopping which was one of their favorite things to do. They always said when the going gets tough the tough go shopping. Cuddles, our dog, came into our lives in 1978 and she loved going everywhere, including shopping. Connie and Yvonne enjoyed doing ceramics and Yvonne helped with Connie’s cosmetic business.
Connie’s love of children certainly extended to her grandchildren. Jennifer had three children, Kyle Alan Olcott (1990), and Krista Lynn Levin (1992) as well as Jack Bivins Gillespie (2002). Connie always wanted to be with her grandkids, but they lived a long ways away, so time together was limited. Fortunately, Jennifer and her three children visited us the end of February, so Connie got to enjoy being with them again.
Connie’s face and heart would light up whenever she was around a dog. Connie’s love of animals from farm days translated into owning non-allergenic dogs – usually poodles due to her asthma. When Bob first met Connie, she had two poodles, Lulu and Doris. Once they passed, about 1978, a cockapoo named Cuddles came along. Cuddles was truly like having a little piece of God with you every day. After Cuddles passed in 1998, there were no dogs until 2002 when friends, Debbie Harris and Lars Gustafson, went to Las Vegas with Connie and Bob to buy a dog. Her name is Precious and she lives up to that name. She is a Maltese/Poodle cross, about 7 lbs. of love. She actually is smaller than most cats. While Precious was Bob’s birthday present to Connie, Precious has been care for by Bob and has become Bob’s dog.
Connie had friends everywhere she went. In high school, she had an English pen friend. They continued writing until her English friend died, and they got together several times both here at theit home or in England. Connie was a member of Beta Sigma Phi sorority when Bob met her and even after the sorority stopped functioning, Connie always maintained contact with the members. To have a relationship with Connie always meant for Life. She used to mail out about 200 Christmas Newsletters each year and they were 8-10 pages long.
Connie and Bob had many parties celebrating friends and family throughout their lives together. There are many stories. One of them was the time Bob wanted to do a surprise party for Connie’s Birthday and did a dinner murder mystery. We told Connie a fib that Glenn Harrington, Yvonne’s first husband and Yvonne couldn’t make her birthday that year. Bob had all 8 guesses dress up to their assigned player description. It took place in the 1900’s. For Connie we put her costume in a trunk and after we yelled surprise we had her open the trunk and put on these clothes. The look of joy and surprise was something Yvonne will always remember. Connie would joke about that for years.
One of the best things Our Immediate family credits Connie for is bringing us closer to God. We went to church like so many do but it was Connie’s way of helping us through so many of life’s difficult moments that grew all of our beliefs. I believe one day we will all be together again and till then as the song goes “will see you again, This is not where it ends I will carry you with me, 'Til I see you again”
Graveside service will be 11:00 a.m. Saturday, May 4, 2024, at Memorial Park Cemetery, 5905 W 4th Ave, Hutchinson, with the Rev. Mike Rose officiating. Elliott Mortuary, 1219 N. Main, Hutchinson, is in charge of arrangements.