Legacy of an Honorable Life One can only imagine the gravity of impact and wisdom that comes with 101 years of life experiences. And rarely do we have the opportunity of knowing and experiencing life with individuals who have crossed over into three digits of life. We experienced life together with such an individual who was known to us as Daddy, Pap, Cuddin Otto and Mr. Carroll. Otto Simmons Carroll, Sr. was the only child born to William Arnett and Corda Mae Carroll in the small community of Richland, Texas on November 22, 1915. William Arnett was a sharecropper and Corda Mae was a domestic worker. Their pride and joy was their son, Otto, who they fondly referred to as "the baby." His parents instilled the values of family, education and a good work ethic in their son, which were the characteristics that defined him as a man, husband, father and teacher. He grew up in a Christian home and accepted Jesus Christ as his Savior at an early age. Otto attended G. W. Jackson High School in Corsicana, Texas from 1929-1933 and was their oldest living graduate. After high school, Otto attended Paul Quinn College in Waco, Texas for two years, receiving an Associate of Arts degree in May, 1937. Taking a break from college, Otto entered the United States Army in June 1942 and was honorably discharged in October 1945. During WWII, Otto served with the 838 Engineer and Aviation Battalion in the European Theater where he prepared sketches for road and airstrip construction using compasses, scales, triangles, T square and ink pens to make the sketches and prepared data for the sketches. Upon release from the Army, Otto attended Barber College in 1945 for six months. And in 1947, Otto chose to continue his education at Prairie View College, receiving a Bachelor of Science degree in 1949 in Mathematics. Otto always had a fascination with numbers, so it was no surprise to his relatives and friends that he chose mathematics as his field of study. In 1952, Otto moved to Ennis, Texas where he worked as a math teacher at G. W. Carver High School (1952 – 1967) and Ennis High School (1967 – 1983). In 1967, the Texas Education Agency named him "Teacher of the Year." He was best known in the community as a favorite teacher and barber—having always been distinguished by his beautiful white hair. Otto's oldest living students are now in their eighties, and he is loved and remembered by many of his students who characterized him as a teacher who really cared about them and their education. Having grown up in the South and living through the Great Depression, World War II, and the Civil Rights Movement, Otto never imagined he would live to see the United States elect its first African American president. Not only did Otto live to see history in the making, on November 4, 2008, he was at the voting site when it opened to cast his vote for the 56th President of the United States, Barack Obama. Because Otto was 92 years at that time, CBS 11 KTVT interviewed him regarding his feelings on the first African American President of the United States. Otto S. Carroll, Sr. celebrated his 100th birthday on November 22, 2015 and was given a party on November 21 with 150 family, friends and former students in attendance. He lived the values he was taught—God first, family and work. Believing a person should have multiple income streams, Otto became a teacher, barber and rental property owner. His barber and beauty shop is located on North Kaufman Street in Ennis Texas. In 2016, Otto was inducted into the Ellis County African American Hall of Fame for his outstanding achievements in the field of education. Otto passed from this life to be with our Lord and Savior on Monday, January 2nd. He leaves to cherish his memory, two sons Otto S. Carroll, Jr. (Duncanville, TX) and William Larry Carroll (Ida Mae) (DeSoto, TX); three daughters, Shari L. Carroll (Duncanville, TX), Laurie A. Carroll (Philadelphia, PA) and Ernestine Bell (Lorenzo) (Abilene TX). Also cherishing his memory is a host of grandchildren, great-grandchildren, cousins and friends. Otto was preceded in death by his wife, Willie Sims Carroll and his daughter, Carolyn Carroll English.
Published in Dallas Morning News on Jan. 5, 2017