Carol Susan DeVANEY

DEVANEY, Carol Susan,

was born May 8, 1954 in the Republic of Panamá to multicultural, multilingual parents. She moved to Washington, D.C., to attend Catholic University of America, where she obtained a B.A. with an emphasis in World Philosophy and Religion, and later completed a master's degree in Social Work with honors the week of her 21st birthday. Carol Susan died at home October 31, 2011 after her long, courageous fight with pancreatic cancer. Her husband and daughter were by her side. She was 57 years old. She was preceded in death by her parents, James Henry DeVaney and Andrea Chen Wong Mahoney; as well as her stepfather, James Raymond Mahoney. She is survived by her husband of more than 33 years, Charles Eldon Taylor; and her daughter, Taryne Jade Taylor; as well as her stepmother, Itzel Nereida Ortiz DeVaney. Carol Susan is also survived by her large Chen Wong family, most of whom live in the Republic of Panamá, including her t¡as, Manuela and Louisa, and primos, Diana, Doris and Getulio, Mater and Julissa, Juan Carmelo, Carmen and Alfonso, Cecilia, Zuleica and Eddie, Zaida and Hernan, and Fania and Tomas. Her remaining DeVaney aunts and uncles include Janet, Ian, Mike and Karen, Rick and Sherry. She is also survived by her mother-in-law, Martha Swink Taylor; brother-in-law, Robert Ervin Taylor; sister-in-law, Brooke Coleman Taylor; and nieces, Leigh Taylor Bernard, Polly Taylor Roberts; and nephew, Hunter Lane Roberts. Carol Susan was owner and president of her training and consulting firm, DeVaney-Wong International, which she established in 1989 and certified as a female and minority business. Carol Susan's clients ranged from nations and multinational Fortune 100s to mom and pops, small towns and tiny non-profits. Each one got her full energy, caring, and expert help. Carol Susan was the primary author of HRD Press's best selling diversity program, Workforce Diversity, which she designed in 1989. She was active in ASTD serving on multiple local boards and national committees. She received ASTD's Torch Award and an Excellent in Practice Citation jointly with Chubb Insurance for their diversity work in Latin America in 2002. She helped facilitate the development of ASTD's first Global Network and in 2004 received ASTD's Staff and Volunteer Partnership Award. Carol Susan taught ASTD's Certification Program in Facilitating Organizational Change.

Carol Susan was a Certified Professional Facilitator with the International Association of Facilitators, a Certified Professional in Learning and Performance, a Licensed Clinical Social Worker in the Commonwealth of Virginia, and a United Nations Preferred Provider. Carol Susan was active in SHRM and served as Diversity Director on the Council for HR Florida. Her work was recognized by the Greater Miami Society for Human Resource Management with the Diversity and Inclusion Pioneer Award in 2011. Carol Susan worked with Henrico County government for more than 25 years providing teambuilding, training, and coaching. She worked for over 15 years with the Virginia Department of Social Services on projects which included two major initiatives preparing leaders for the impact of welfare reform and culture change process to create global competencies. She worked with USDA for over 16 years on initiatives such as the reinventing government process of the 1990s. Carol Susan's long-term relationships of 20 to 30 years with many of her clients demonstrate both her effectiveness and ability to build relationships during painful change processes. She led by example. Carol Susan spent her life and career fighting injustice, prejudice, and ignorance on large and small scales. Remarkably, her efforts to create a better world never detracted from her fierce commitment to her family. Her daughter often volunteered her mother to help at school functions, explaining to bemused teachers: "My mommy doesn't work." Her ability to balance work and family has been an inspiration. Her caring and thoughtfulness, as expressed by her reaching out to help others is legendary among her large group of family, friends and clients. She remembered details of lives, families and work of an astonishing number of people. Many knew her as one of the most caring and loving people they had ever met. Carol Susan DeVaney's energy and spirit were visible even to complete strangers who would engage her in conversations at the grocery store and end up telling her their life stories and asking her advice. She never turned anyone away nor did she ever turn a blind eye to the suffering in the world. Carol Susan's last wish was for books in Spanish to be donated to her mother's village, Palmas Bellas, a town in the rural Colón province of Panamá, as a way to celebrate her love of reading and commitment to knowledge and self-development. Her family is setting up a memorial fund for this purpose. In lieu of flowers, donations to help facilitate this wish would be appreciated. You may give donations directly to her husband or daughter or you may choose to wait until the fund is established. For updates and more information on the Carol Susan DeVaney Memorial Literary Fund, e-mail

[email protected].

Carol Susan's life will be celebrated November 19, 2011 with visitation from 6 to 7 p.m., and the memorial service from 7 to 8 p.m. at Bliley's Funeral Home, 8510 Staples Mill Road, Richmond, Va. 23228. Phone (804)355-3800.

All are welcome.


This obituary was originally published in the Richmond Times-Dispatch.