Carol Daddazio Stevens

Carol Daddazio Stevens

July 19, 2025

CHARLESTON, IL - Carol Daddazio Stevens, Professor Emerita of English at Eastern Illinois University, passed away from complications of Parkinson's disease at the Odd Fellow-Rebekah Home in Mattoon, Illinois, on July 19, 2025. She did not go gentle into that good night; she raged, raged against the dying of the light. Carol is survived by her husband David, to whom she was married for over 55 years; her sister Vinessa Buckland (Matthew); her brother-in-law William Reb Parks (Karen) of Orange, California, and his children and grandchildren; as well as numerous other nieces, nephews, great nieces, great nephews, and cousins. She was predeceased by her parents Vincent R. Daddazio and Amelia Daddazio and her brother Vincent J. Daddazio, Sr., all of Rochester, New York.

Carol received her B.A. summa cum laude from Nazareth College in 1967; her M.A. from Kent State University in 1968; and her Ph.D. from Bowling Green University in 1978. Prior to beginning teaching at Eastern Illinois University in 1981, Carol taught at Madison High School in Rochester, New York; Kent State University; Bowling Green University; LaSalle College; Villanova University; Arcadia University; and Oakland University. She received a National Endowment for the Humanities Fellowship in 1979 to study Humanist Rhetoric at the University of California at Berkeley. Carol taught rhetoric, seventeenth century English literature, children's and adolescents' literature, utopian and dystopian literature, fantasy and science fiction, myth and culture, and women's studies. Her scholarship covered these same fields, and her book on British fantasy writer J.R.R. Tolkien was especially well received. The E.I.U. Women's Studies Council named her a "Woman of Achievement" in 2001, and she received many awards from E.I.U. for excellence in teaching, scholarship, and service. She was particularly proud of having served on and chaired the University Personnel Committee for several years, and for being named the mace bearer for the 2008 E.I.U. graduation.

Following her retirement from E.I.U. in 2009 Carol remained active as a member of the Women's Studies Council; as the Convener for several years of the Unitarian Universalists of Eastern Illinois; and on the Board of Directors (and for several years the Corresponding Secretary) of Soup Stop, a local food distribution charity. She continued her annual train trips to the Oregon coast until Covid 19 interrupted them in 2020. She also enjoyed the cruises she and David took from Seattle to Alaska and back; to Greece, Turkey, Italy, Monaco, and France; and from Montreal to Boston.

Perhaps Carol's most memorable quality was her ability to make and keep friends. She cared deeply about everyone she met and went out of her way to keep in touch with new friends and old. The love she sent into the world came back to her many fold, even in the nursing home where she spent her final days. She loved hosting her annual Christmas party until she was physically unable to do so, and nothing pleased her more than making a huge pan of vegetarian lasagna to be topped with either plant-based or regular sauce, sausage, and meatballs.

Contributions in Carol's memory may be made to the E.I.U. English Department, 860 W. Lincoln Ave., Charleston, IL 61920 or to the Unitarian Universalists of Eastern Illinois, 1142 N. C.R. 2200 E., Casey, IL 62420.

To send a condolence message, light a candle, or share memories, please visit www.adamsfuneralchapel.com. Adams Funeral Chapel of Charleston, IL, is handling the arrangements.