Carol Olimpia

Carol Ann Olimpia

Resident of Santa Clara

A Life Has Ended But A Dream Has Been Fulfilled

Born in Oakland, California, on November 6, 1946, Carol Ann passed away on November 25, 2010, while surrounded by her entire family of twenty-one Certainly a heart wrenching Thanksgiving Day, but one in which a great deal of love and thanks was shared for having been her husband, her daughters, her sons, her granddaughters, and her grandsons of such a beautiful and strong woman. Carol Ann succumbed after a 9 year battle with breast cancer.

Carol Ann and her brother, Steven Sloan, were born and raised by Virginia Stowell, a single working mother with a similar strong character and deep sense of love and personal responsibility toward her two children. Carol Ann deeply loved her mother, brother, and uncle, Frank Shrade, who she considered her surrogate father.

Carol Ann graduated from San Leandro High School in 1964. She began working for the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company in San Francisco where she met her husband, Gary Olimpia. Carol Ann's dream in life was to be a stay-at-home mother of five children. She realized her dream but, more importantly, she was an incredible mother of five and grandmother of ten. From the birth of her first child, Kevin John, to the second, Daniel Scott, to the third, Allyson Marie, to the fourth, Katherine Amy, to the fifth, Stacy Anne, and through the birth of her ten grandchildren, her time, energy and extraordinary love were devoted to the best interests of her children and grandchildren. Throughout the many years of mothering, Carol Ann developed an extraordinary and loving bond with her children and grandchildren, which was special as well as amazing to observe. Every child who is born of this Earth should have a mother and grandmother as perfect and loving as Carol Ann.

Through the years of raising her children, Carol Ann was active as a room mother more times than one could imagine for each of her children, while they attended St. Justin's School in Santa Clara, where she served on the Principal's Council for many years. Such active involvement continued while her children attended and graduated from Archbishop Mitty High School. Carol Ann served two terms on the Archbishop Mitty Board of Trustees and was the chairperson of Mitty's Black and Gold annual fund raising event held at the Fairmont Hotel for two consecutive years. For several years Carol Ann and Gary were selected representatives to the San Jose Catholic Diocese Conference on Parenting where they were asked to share their parenting practices with young parents who had been invited to the conference. Carol Ann discussed her very simple and direct parenting formula: begin and end your day with plenty of love and caring towards your children, while always knowing where they were, who they were with, what they were doing, while at the same time, requiring that they be respectful to persons and property, and to consistently perform to the level of their ability. Actually quite simple but a 24-7 job not ever to be taken lightly. Carol Ann's selflessness in parenting was the hub of her family wheel.

The license plates on Carol Ann's two cars tell her story to the world; they read "Mother of 5" and "Love To Be Mimi". Few of us ever fully realize our dream. Carol Ann not only lived her dream but fulfilled her dream as well.

At 64 years of age, Carol Ann was much too beautiful and young to leave us ... she will be forever missed and forever loved and appreciated by her family. She is survived by her mother, her brother, her husband, her five children and her ten grandchildren: Gregory, Jason, Kathleen, Jessica, Kyle, William, CarolAnn, James, Michael, and Margaret. Her daughters Allyson and Stacy are currently expecting Nicholas in January and, hopefully, Sloan in July.

The family requests in lieu of flowers that donations be made to the Susan B. Koman Breast Cancer Foundation. Envelopes will be made available at the Memorial Mass to be celebrated in Carol Ann's honor at the Cathedral Basilica of St. Joseph, 80 S. Market Street, San Jose, at 3:30 p.m. on Thursday, December 2, 2010, and at the reception and buffet to be held immediately following the Mass at the Fairmont Hotel, Imperial Ballroom, 170 S. Market Street, San Jose.

We are a family; please do not feel you have to leave your children at home.