Carolyn Bernita Horan

1931 - 2017

Carolyn Bernita Horan Died October 24, 2017 at her home in Forestville, CA after a long battle with cancer. Carolyn Bernita Husel was born October 21, 1931 to Clarence and Adella Husel in Fargo, North Dakota. As young girl, during WWII, the family moved to Marin City, and her father took a job in the shipyards of San Francisco. As a young woman Carolyn married Robert Andrieux, with whom she had 4 children, Joseph, Robert, Sam and David. After her first marriage ended she married Thomas Horan. With Tom she gave birth to another son, Michael. She was married to Tom until his death in 2005. Carolyn's daughter Sam, went on to have two children Vanessa and Sean. Mike went on to have a son Max. Sadly both Sam and Sean predeceased Carolyn. Vanessa had three children, Alexa, Camille and Nathan. Shortly after her marriage to Tom, Carolyn decided to devote her career to the important work of educating children. She returned to college and earned a Master's Degree in Rehabilitation Counseling and was hired at the Marin County Office of Education in the early 1970's. Her first major career achievement was as Program Manager of the ROP program of Marin County. Carolyn was not satisfied with this challenge and continued her education, ultimately earning a Doctorate of Educational Administration and the title of Dr. Horan. She rose to hold the title of Administrative Assistant, and then, the Assistant Superintendent of Marin County for Educational Services. She was the first woman to hold this title. During these years Carolyn took a one-year sabbatical to act as the Superintendent of Fairfax School District. While working at the Marin County Office of Education, Carolyn acted as an expert witness for a landmark court case involving the Beryl Buck Trust in which the San Francisco and Oakland School Districts, among others, made an unsuccessful attempt to break the multi-million- dollar trust fund left for Marin County. The court's ruling allowed the large trust to be exclusively awarded to the county of Marin for educational and other philanthropic endeavors. Afterwards, Dr. Horan, spearheaded a successful effort to create a non-profit organization to allow the Buck Trust funds to support long term research programs in Marin County and in 1987 created the Buck Institute for Education. She served as its President and CEO until her retirement in 2001. Still, in her vision, the Buck Institute for Educational research continues to thrive to this day. Among her numerous accomplishments with the Buck Institute Carolyn developed the Walker Creek Ranch educational facility. Located on the Synanon property in West Marin, Walker Creek Ranch is now a premier outdoor education and conference center that serves students and citizens of Marin County. This project, which took seven years of hard work and dogged determination to bring to fruition, will be a legacy and tribute to Carolyn's ability, persuasiveness, charisma and dedication. This and many other distinguished accomplishments earned her induction into the Marin Women's Hall of Fame in 1992. At the ceremony, she told a reporter from the Marin Independent Journal that her years with the county office and the Buck Institute had allowed her the opportunity to help children at risk, students in need, and make a lasting contribution to the field of education. Shortly before her retirement Carolyn and Tom moved from Tiburon to a home on apple orchard in "Pocket Canyon" in Forestville, CA. Retirement with Carolyn was more a word and less a state of mind however, and she soon began a new phase of her life in the small artistic community. Becoming a ceramicist, Carolyn could soon be seen riding her Harley Davidson through the town with the 'Ladies of Harley' motorcycle club. She quickly built a well-equipped pottery studio on her property and created a new business, Appletree Ceramics. In time Carolyn became a member of the Sebastopol Center for the Arts, the Plaza Art Center in Healdsburg, the Marin County Center for the Arts, the Gualala Art Center and the Bodega Artisans Co-op. Her accomplishments included winning first prize in the Gualala Art Show among numerous others. Next, a lifelong love of fine cuisine inspired Carolyn to become a food critic for the local newspaper. She wrote many articles, each adding to the culture of Sonoma County, as well as to the success of many up and coming talented chefs and unique restaurants. Carolyn also began hosting a decade of annual gatherings, dubbed as 'Mommapolooza'. The aroma of good food, the sound of eclectic and music encompassed Carolyn's property during the Mommapolooza events, in which many people camped on the property for the weekend while eating and making merry. Perhaps it's these time that prompted one neighbor to begin referring to her as the 'Matriarch' of Pocket Canyon. Dr. Carolyn Horan led an extraordinary life that touched the lives of countless people, many of whom will never even know her name. She will be missed, but her legacy, memory, and extraordinary ability to unite people and get things done lives on. In the book titled "Diva's, Dames and Dolls: A Celebration of the Female Spirit", by Kathleen Fitzgerald you will find a photograph of Carolyn demonstrates, so delightfully, her wonderful spirit. If you would like to help recognize Carolyn's inimitable spirit and legacy, you can help her to complete her last educational endeavor of upgrading the boys facility at R.V.C.A (a school that has touched her family personally). Send your donations to: Teen Rescue, Inc. c/o Mike Horan, 2960 Amethyst Way Redding, CA 96003. Your generous donation will not only honor Carolyn's extraordinary life, but it will benefit an important non-profit organization that caters to struggling youth. The tax ID #: 33-0546855.