Caroline Ramsay Merriam

Human Rights Activist and Philanthropist Dies at Age 88

Caroline "C.C." Ramsay Merriam, a lifelong advocate for disenfranchised craftspeople and those marginalized by social inequality, passed away peacefully on Friday morning, October 3, 2025 in Washington, DC, surrounded by loved ones.

Born in Baltimore, Maryland in 1937, Caroline Cullen Ramsay graduated from Vassar College in 1958 and received a Master's degree from The New York School of Social Work, later Columbia University.

Many will remember C.C. as an ardent activist for peace and justice. In her twenties, she joined the Civil Rights Movement, participating in the March on Washington and in door-to-door registration of Black voters in Mississippi. In the 1960s she worked for the Office of Economic Opportunity, establishing a craft store program for the domestic Peace Corps which provided women living in poverty with self-sustaining opportunities to make and sell crafts. Later she wrote a crafts manual for the Peace Corps.

In 1986, she founded The Crafts Center, pioneering an economic model offering fair trade to traditional artisan craftspeople in global and domestic markets. The organization supported artisans in 55 countries across five continents, advocating for human rights, labor policies, and sustainable crafts businesses. Considered a leading authority on indigenous crafts, she co-authored an evaluation of UNESCO's crafts program and became a lifelong supporter of the Grameen Bank and micro-credit initiatives.

In 1990 she married John E. Merriam, a retired diplomat who later worked in international development. Strong advocates for the marginalized and the disempowered, the couple worked with the homeless at Miriam's Kitchen in DC, and gave generously to humanitarian causes.

Ms. Ramsay Merriam is remembered for her wry sense of humor, her great generosity and a fiery spirit. She is survived by her husband, three stepchildren, two goddaughters, seven grandchildren and five great-grandchildren, and her brothers, G. Remak Ramsay and John B. Ramsay III.

Her funeral service will be held in Washington, DC at Western Presbyterian Church on Saturday, October 11 at 10 a.m.