URBANA, IL (Chambana Today) – Carolyn Young O’Rourke, of Urbana, passed away surrounded by family on June 30th, 2024, after a brief illness.
She was born June 9, 1946, the daughter of the late Clifford Young and Vada Kessler Turner in Cairo, IL. Growing up near the Mississippi gave her a deep and sustaining love of rivers and an endless fascination with history.
Carolyn graduated from Cairo High School in 1964 and received a bachelor’s degree at Southern Illinois University Carbondale and achieved her master’s degree in Instructional Materials in 1973 from SIUC as well. While raising three children, she cared deeply about early education and youth literacy, served as the PTA President for Urbana School District 116, and earned a certificate of advanced studies in Library Science from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. She worked as an Environmental Researcher and Assessor with the Army Corps of Engineers until her retirement in 2012 and was awarded several honors for outstanding service during her tenure. Her career allowed her to travel widely, where she fell in love with places such as the southwest US, Germany, and Turkey. She continued her travels throughout her life, fueling her innate curiosity and expansive worldview. She sought out water and rivers wherever she went.
She surrounded herself with friends with hearts as big as her own. She will be remembered for her generosity of time, spirit and knowledge, her strength and independence. She had a passion for learning about both history and the present world around us. She fueled that lifelong love of knowledge with books, travel, movies, music, and voracious consumption of daily news. A perpetual night owl, she nevertheless woke up early to serve as an election judge in countless elections. She was a devoted Illinois basketball fan, always dressing in orange for game day, and a skilled bowler. She loved Scottish crime novels and Johnny Cash, strong coffee and dark chocolate, prairie flowers and the Fourth of July. She was a gifted seamstress and expert knitter; the blankets, quilts, and clothing she made for her grandchildren were a tangible expression of her love, and she delighted in teaching others how to knit as well. She instilled in her children compassion, a commitment to serving others, and a love of the outdoors. She adopted many cats over the years, lavishing them with attention and reveling in their distinctive personalities. Most of all, she loved her three children and eight grandchildren fiercely and unconditionally.
Left to cherish her memory are her children, Daniel (Erica) O’Rourke, Sergeant First Class (RET) Michael (Michelle) O’Rourke, and Caitlin (Nathan) Blessing; her grandchildren, Elliot, Eleanor, Josephine, William, Gavin, Sara Grace, Henry and Margaret, and her very fine cat, Pester. She is preceded in death by her parents and her half-brother, Donald J. Turner.
In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to one of her favorite charities: Women for Women International, Planned Parenthood, Southern Poverty Law Center, and VoteVets. To honor her memory, exercise your right to vote, seek out the inner beauty and common ground we all share, and spend some time by the water.
Condolences may be offered at Renner-Wikoff Chapel.