Carrie Martin

Obituary For Carrie Martin

Carrie Jeanette Campbell was born on April 6, 1946, in Camden, South Carolina to Ethel Mae Coldwell and Frank Nixon. She was the second oldest of Ethel Mae’s thirteen children. As a young girl, Carrie was strong and courageous, often chopping wood for her cousin Dolly Ann and building fires to cook and keep warm in the winter.

At eighteen, Carrie moved to New York City to be close to her mother and siblings. After settling in Harlem, she attended Louis D. Brandeis High School and worked in an optical eyewear store. In 1966, Carrie married James Martin, and they were blessed with three sets of twins—Sean and Shalanda, Troy and Teroy, Michael and Michelle. Later, she gave birth to Donte, completing their family of seven children.

Affectionately known as “Big Red,” Carrie was admired for her black curly hair, stylish clothes, cat eye glasses, red lipstick, and love for her favorite color, purple. During the heroin epidemic, her home became a safe haven. She bought fifty-pound bags of potatoes and fed neighborhood children. With Troy and Michael carrying, Michelle and Dolly-Ann cutting, and Sean frying, Aunty Carolyn’s French fries “didn’t need ketchup.”

Carrie was a faithful member of Saint Andrew’s Baptist Church under Reverend Lee B. Garvine, serving as an usher and choir member while evangelizing in her community and planting her siblings and children in church.

In 1977, Carrie moved to The Bronx, where she worked as a police clerk and opened her home at 1819 Weeks Avenue to friends, family, and strangers. At age thirty-six, she graduated from Wilfred Academy Beauty School, becoming a licensed beautician specializing in jerry curls and press-and-curls. People traveled across boroughs for their $40 appointments at Aunty Carolyn’s house.

Following God’s voice, Carrie joined Prayer Temple Church under Apostle Joe Ross. There, she financed renovations, evangelized, and insisted that any guest spending the night attend church on Sunday morning. In 1987, she was consecrated as a Deacon, serving faithfully in the Prayer Temple Club and Hope Committee. She became known for hugging every congregant before taking her seat, a gift of warmth and welcome.

Carrie also brought her mother, Ethel Mae, who served as a Mother of the Church. Together, they cultivated a family rooted in prayer and God’s covenant. Carrie journaled prayers of gratitude and protection over her children.

As the crack epidemic struck New York City, God used Carrie mightily. She became a licensed therapeutic foster parent with Graham Windham and Little Flower Children Services, preserving families and raising children. In 1997, she adopted Larnell, Diamond, and her niece Antigua.

She continued her work through “Friends and Family” services, often winning for bringing the most people to church. She hosted crab fests, Thanksgiving celebrations, volunteered at Grand Manor Nursing Home teaching Bible studies, and visited hospitals to pray for the sick and shut in.

In 2013, Carrie moved to Hagerstown, Maryland to be cared for by her children Michelle and later Sean and Troy. She was blessed to see and love her grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

On September 1, 2025, Deaconess Martin completed her assignment and finished her course. She is preceded by her mother, Ethel Mae, and children Sean, Shalanda, Teroy, Michelle, and Donte. She leaves cherished memories with her siblings Larry, Harriet, Dorothy, James, Oranda, and Veronica; children Troy, Michael, Irene, Diamond, Larnell, and Antigua; along with grandchildren, great-grandchildren, nieces, nephews, cousins, her church family, and friends including Maxine Jordan, Anita Austin, and Deaconess Rebecca Pollard.

Carrie Martin was a devoted matriarch and woman of God who raised a village. May her legacy inspire generations to love God, His Word, and His people. Amen.

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