Carol Kay Mohling

Carol K. Mohling, 79, of Tecumseh, Kansas, died on February 10, 2025. A visitation for family/close friends will be held on Monday, February 24, 2025 at Amos Family Funeral Home from 11am-12pm with a funeral service to immediately follow.  Burial at Resurrection Cemetery in Lenexa, KS.  A larger celebration of Carol's life will be held at a later date.

Carol lived every day with purpose and passion, applying that attitude to everything she did. She often said she was lucky to have lived such an enchanted life. Carol welcomed every sunrise, sunset, and moonrise as if it were her first. She married her high school sweetheart, Wendell, and together they worked to better the environment and the world. Through their actions and teachings, they sought to share the message that we are all interconnected with each other and our world, and to walk softly on this Earth. They began Wilderness Dreams to share their love of Alaska and the importance of protecting wild places. Together, they were instrumental in securing the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act (ANILCA) passed by Congress in 1980. The act established conservation areas, including national parks, wildlife refuges, and wilderness areas. It also gave priority to Alaska residents for subsistence uses of wildlife and fish. Their commitment to the great state of Alaska resulted in 17 trips, including those with student naturalists. They welcomed the love of their lives in their daughter, Maria, and Carol was blessed with two wonderful grandchildren whom she adored. She impacted everyone she met by making them feel valued. If you were blessed to call her a friend, you had a friend for life. She positively influenced the children she taught at Nieman Grade School in Shawnee, KS, many of whom still keep in touch. She also served on numerous boards, such as The Kansas Association of Teachers of Science, with the same level of passion. She will be deeply missed.

Carol once remarked that her goal in teaching her 5th-grade students was to "make them into people that you would want to be neighbors with." One of her most fulfilling roles was being a grandmother. Jett and Alatna were fortunate to spend many days learning and playing with her. They took naps, enjoyed snacks, went on field trips to John Deere and the quarry, clomped around in shoes, moved rocks in the driveway, created art projects, slid down slides, and played epic basketball games in the breezeway. Grandma also delighted in speeding over hills at her grandchildren's prompting, their screams of joy filling the air.

Carol graduated from Concordia High School in Seward, NE. She then received her Bachelor of Science in Education in 1970 from the University of Kansas and earned her Master's in Elementary Science in 1973 from Webster University, and an additional Master's degree from the University of Kansas. She taught Elementary Science and served as a curriculum consultant from 1970-1979 in the Shawnee Mission School District. For some time, she also sold Mary Kay cosmetics, which not only supplemented her income but allowed her to meet new people and promote skin care. Carol assumed the role of stay-at-home mom by “a flip of a coin” until Maria began kindergarten, but she was invested in many other passions during that time. Wendell and Carol also poured their blood, sweat, and tears into The Prairie Center for approximately three years. During this time, Carol earned her real estate license and began selling real estate, a career she pursued until she retired. She briefly returned to teaching part-time in the Fairfax County Public Schools as a Gifted and Talented teacher. She was always a people person and a collector of art, Native American artifacts, and jewelry. In 2010, she began her own jewelry business called Natural Dazzlers. When Wendell died, she started a non-profit foundation in his name and honor called the Wendell Mohling Foundation. Established in 2005, it seeks to support K-12 Kansas Teachers of Science by providing a monetary award for the winning teacher to attend a national or regional National Science Teaching Association conference. This Foundation will continue as long as there are teachers of science, now honoring both Wendell and Carol. These dreamers will live for eternity in their impact on those who knew them.

In 2014, Carol met Marlin Weyer online, and they enjoyed companionship, travel, and supporting one another in many of life's triumphs and tribulations. Carol enjoyed gaining new family members in Marlin’s sister Melody, daughter Jennifer, granddaughter Monica, great-grandchildren, as well as Melody’s family. Carol enjoyed watching Jett and Alatna grow with Marlin in their lives, which included attending many ball games and swim meets, Christmases, monster truck rallies, trips to Florida, and plenty of jokes and hijinks.

Carol was many things to many people, almost too numerous to list. Above all, she loved her people and family fiercely. She stayed connected and involved to the best of her ability and was the best grandma that Jett and Alatna could have asked for.

Carol was preceded in death by her husband, Wendell Mohling; her parents; Wendell’s parents; sister-in-law Joyce Earnhart; brother-in-law Jim Earnhart; and close friends Jon and Marjorie Burkholder, and Janette Craig. Carol leaves behind loving family members, including her daughter, Maria Alatna Snyder of Nevada, MO; grandson, Jarrett “Jett” Snyder; granddaughter, Alatna Snyder, all of Nevada, MO; partner, Marlin Weyer of Tecumseh, KS; sisters-in-law, Letha Morefeld (Tom) of Mesa, AZ, Celesta Armknecht of Lincoln, NE, LaRue Cole of Lincoln, NE; and brother-in-law, Lynn Mohling of Council Bluffs, IA; and a sister, Sara Thimm.

Carol was surrounded by numerous friends gathered throughout the years, much like one collects treasures of the earth. Each of her dear friends will miss her, and nature will gently share signs that Carol is still with us in spirit. Carol's generosity extended beyond her life, as she was an organ donor, giving the gift of life and hope to others in need.

In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the Wendell Mohling Foundation by mailing to P.O. Box 442536, Lawrence, Kansas 66044, or by visiting the Foundation's website by CLICKING THIS LINK. Contributions can also be made to the scholarship fund for Jett and Alatna Snyder (checks to Maria Snyder).