Carol Louis Olsen, 77, of Morro Bay, California, recently passed away. Carol died unexpectedly during one of her beloved afternoon walks through Morro Bay.
Carol was born in 1947 in Minneapolis, Minnesota to John and Mary Louise Buckley. Carol was the eldest of three daughters who grew up as part of an extended family that included her grandparents James and Jeanette Greco, with whom Carol and her sisters were especially close. Carol excelled academically throughout her life, ultimately earning a master’s degree. She also loved working in an academic environment, which included a 25-year career at Stanford University.
Carol was married for 37 years to the love of her life, Eric Olsen, also of Morro Bay, until his death in 2023. Carol and Eric traveled the world together. They loved exploring new cultures, sampling local cuisine, hiking exotic terrain and listening to different music. Some of their favorite trips included their regular hikes in the Swiss, French and Italian Alps, as well as coast-to-coast hiking group trips in Ireland and the UK.
Carol is survived by her loving sisters, JoAnn Buckley and Barbara Brandt, her niece Alison Brandt, and her nephews Robert and Bradley O’Keef.
Carol and her late husband Eric shared a strong faith. They believed in the importance of education, generosity and freedoms, and held a deep love of the power of music and the outdoors. Carol’s and Eric’s legacies will live on through meaningful gifts to the Carter Center’s Peace Programs and Cuesta College Music Department.
A Memorial Mass will be held at St. Timothy’s Catholic Church in Morro Bay on December 7, 2024, at 10 a.m.
