CATALINA CLARA CARTER Catalina "Clara" Almanza Carter, 87, of Wilmington, NC died on Wednesday, November 13, 2019 at The Lower Cape Fear Hospice & Life Care Center. She was born April 2, 1932 in Santiago, Panama to the late Delfina Baptista Almanza and Jacinto Almanza. She was also preceded in death by her husband, Nathan David Carter, Sr. and her son, Nathan David Carter, Jr. Nathan David Carter, Sr., serving in the US Army during the Korean War, was stationed in Canal Zone in Panama. Eventually they married on June 6, 1954 there at Canal Zone and moved (back) to Wilmington, NC, where Mr. Carter was born and raised. Mrs. Carter became a naturalized citizen of the United States in 1961. She was very proud of her American citizenship and felt very blessed to live the majority of life here in the United States. Mrs. Carter was a gifted seamstress all her life and owned her own tailoring store for many years, Rholey Tailoring, which was located in downtown Wilmington. She was a member of St. Mary Catholic Church and St. Mark Catholic Church, and also attended Myrtle Grove Presbyterian Church for many years. She had an avid love of gardening and was the most at home puttering amongst the flowers in her own back yard at her home in the Lake Forest area where she lived most of her life. She loved animals and especially so, her little dog "Shiloh". Surviving is her daughter, Monica Carter Henderson; her daughter in law, Renee Holliday Carter (John); extended family , Kevin and Denise Holliday and their children, Will and Lauren; her sister in Panama, Lidia (Juan) Abrego; many other relatives in Panama; and a nephew and two nieces in the Northern Virginia area. Many thanks to the friends, family, neighbors, those in the medical profession, and The Lower Cape Fear Hospice who have walked life's journey with the Carter family, most especially in recent years. The Funeral Mass will be celebrated at 1:00 PM Wednesday, November 20, 2019 at Basilica Shrine of St. Mary by Bishop Bernard "Ned" E. Shlesinger III. Interment will follow in Oleander Memorial Gardens. The family will receive friends 1 hour prior to the Mass. Memorials may be sent to The American Heart Association, Alzheimer's Association, or to the charity of your choice.
Published in the Wilmington Star-News on Nov. 17, 2019