Carolyn C. Kutz

In loving memory of Carolyn Cooley Kutz

Carolyn Cooley Kutz went to Heaven on August 26, 2026. She was born on October 26, 1937. She left this world peacefully and gracefully, just as she lived her life.

She had two beautiful daughters with her first husband, Dr. Hiram William Cooley. She later built a life with her late husband, Gerald Kutz, in northern Wisconsin where they enjoyed fishing, boating and snowmobiling together. She was a friend of the local library and enjoyed running the annual 4th of July cakewalk and decorating their pontoon boat for the July 4 boat parade. They spent many winters to escape the cold and snow in Sun City, AZ.

Carolyn was a remarkably strong woman. She was a loving, supportive mom to her two beloved daughters, Audrey and Karen. Carolyn loved antiques, refinishing furniture, took pride in her home and she cooked wonderful meals. She was a talented quilter who made some beautiful quilts and she sewed clothes for her daughters when they were growing up. One of her favorite pastimes was going to flea markets and thrift shops with her daughters. She cherished her time with them, no matter what they did together. Carolyn had faith in her daughters and always stood by their side. Both of her daughters loved her beyond words and she will live on in their hearts forever.

In addition to being the best mom in the world, Carolyn was a grandma, a great grandma and an accomplished woman with a Master’s Degree, as well as a long and successful career as an English teacher at Waterford Union High School in Waterford, Wisconsin. Her passion for teaching and her love for her students was unmistakable, leaving an enduring legacy in the hearts of all who knew her.

She was born in Kansas and had cousins there who adored and looked up to her. In the 1950s, to her cousins who were several years younger, Carolyn was a raven-haired beauty, surely the queen of her college campus, an “it girl.” She had wit, sparkle and charm, and her cousin, Liz Moore, said they aspired to be like her. Years later, they learned that when Carolyn was their age, she had worked in a Dairy Queen in her small town of McPherson, KS, and their father – her uncle – nicknamed her Corn Dog. That poked their starry bubble, but the fact she reminded him with gales of laughter at the memory showed how she didn’t take herself too seriously. She could have. Carolyn faced many difficulties in her life, including cancer and strokes that limited her mobility, as well as a heart attack, triple bypass surgery and dementia. Still, she continued to live her life with grace and optimism, and she maintained her delightfully, witty, sometimes sarcastic, sense of humor, which endeared her to those around her. She never did stop loving those corn dogs!

Carolyn is survived by her daughters, Audrey Cooley Geldard and Karen Cooley, as well as her grandchildren, Jessica Hensgen, Rachel Hensgen, Andrew Michalski, Antonio Ayala, Natasha Ayala, Gena Brown and Sam Brown, and her beautiful great grandchildren. Carolyn is also survived by other family and friends.

She was predeceased by her husband, Gerald Kutz, her parents, Frederick and Lugene Roehrman, her brother, Kenneth Roehrman, and other family members.

Carolyn’s daughters want to thank Meg Pennewell and her wonderful, caring staff at London Lodge Assisted Living in Cambridge, Wisconsin, who tenderly, gently and lovingly took care of Carolyn the last seven years of her life, as well as Rainbow Hospice who assisted with her care at London Lodge as she approached the end of her life. In lieu of flowers, donations in Carolyn’s memory to London Lodge Assisted Living, W9095 London Road, Cambridge, Wisconsin 53523, or Rainbow Community Care, 147 W. Rockwell Ave., Jefferson, WI 53549 are appreciated.

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Carolyn C. Kutz, please visit our floral store.