Carrol Lee Shepherd

Carrol Lee Shepherd, 96, of Wayzata, Minnesota, died on Saturday, September 6, 2025.

She is preceded in death by her husband Walter Preston Shepherd; parents James and Leona Pewick; and grandparents Ora and Frank Dore.

She is survived by daughter Nina Gwynn Shepherd of Deephaven, Minnesota and son James Alden Shepherd of Duluth, Minnesota.

Born in 1928, Carrol grew up St. Louis, Missouri; McAllen, Texas; and the small town of Ledonia, Missouri, where she lived with her grandparents in a little clapboard house filled with doting aunts and boisterous uncles. After graduating high school, Carrol moved to Mexico, Missouri, where she landed a job as a secretary at Mexico Refractories Company. She rented a room, walked every day to work in high heels, adopted a Chihuahua named Pepe, and fell in love with a hometown hero who had signed with the St. Louis Cardinals named Preston Shepherd.

Married in 1954, Carrol and Preston moved to Wausau, Wisconsin, then to Tulsa, Oklahoma; Houston, Texas; St. Louis, Missouri and back to Wausau, Wisconsin, as Preston worked his way up the corporate ladder in insurance. It was in Wausau, while being a full-time mom, that Carrol honed her interest in antiques by becoming president of the Wausau Antique Study Club.

After moving to the Minneapolis area in 1975, Carrol took a part-time job with the fabled Corner Door of Wayzata, where she learned the consignment business, conducted estate sales, and made lifelong friends. In 1983, she opened her own shop, Carrol Shepherd's Consignment Shop in Deephaven, which became known throughout the Twin Cities for high-end second-hand furnishings.

In business for more than 27 years, Carrol's reputation was one of honesty, fair pricing, and knowledge of early American and English furniture and French and Italian decorative items. Despite her success, it was the friendships she made over the years that she valued above all else. She had an enormous circle of friends and acquaintances-many of whom she met through her business-that lasted her lifetime.

Carrol adored her children, and like most loving moms, spoke with pride about them to anyone who would listen. She loved to laugh and was well known for her gregarious nature, her sparkling personality, and her legendary storytelling that often left people doubled over with laughter. To the very end, Carrol's eyes twinkled with anticipation, kindness, and gratitude. She is deeply loved and sorely missed.