Edith Carlson Dengler Obituary
Edith died Friday evening in the loving embrace of her family in Los Angeles, CA. Born Edith Silvia Calahan in Chicago, Ill. to Edward and Gertrude, she worked as a secretary and then model before marrying Roy Carlson. They had four children and moved around the country from Illinois to Wisconsin, to Long Island, NY, to Thousand Oaks, CA, finally settling in Morris Plains, NJ. After the children were all in school, Edith went to work for the Board of Elections in Morristown, NJ., working her way up to Deputy to the Superintendent.
At retirement, Edith and Roy built a home in Hampstead, NC on a golf course. They spent many happy years of their lives playing golf, bridge, and listening to jazz. Edith was a wonderful grandmother, frequently flying to the West Coast to stay with the grandkids so that her daughter and son-in-law could escape for a few days. Most summers she hosted her children, spouses and grandchildren for weeks at a time at her homes in Hampstead and Pittsboro, NC. Edith was a master gardener and had a lovely garden wherever she lived. She was a real Renaissance woman. Not only did she have a green thumb, she could knit, crochet, hook rugs, sew window shades, weave baskets and make exquisite pinecone wreaths. She was a animal lover who let her kids have whatever pets they wanted growing up: Irish Setters, cats, parakeets, gerbils and fish! She also supported many animal rescues and charities. Edith and Roy were married almost 49 years when he died in 1997. Later she married Bill Dengler with whom she had a happy sixteen year marriage until his death in 2016. They loved exploring Europe and frequently traveled around the country by car, often visiting family. They moved to Fearrington Village near Chapel Hill, NC where they were part of the founding congregation of a Presbyterian church that would later become Chapel in the Pines. They enjoyed working for the Food Pantry and Habitat for Humanity.
Edith had a beautiful singing voice and a wicked sense of humor. Ironically, she couldn't tell a joke to save her life because she wasn't able to stop laughing long enough to deliver the punchline. Beside her two husbands, Edith was predeceased by her youngest child, RJ (2001) and siblings, Lois, Bill and Ed. She is survived by her children, Kim Carlson, Matt (Heather) Carlson and Laura Carlson (Jeffrey) Benson, five grand-children, Kaitlyn Benson, Samantha (Austen) Marrs, Ryan Benson, Ean (Dom) Carlson, Kighla Carlson and greatgrandson, Wyatt Marrs. There will be no formal service. Donations in her memory can be made to The Alzheimer's Association or to an animal charity close to your heart.
