Caroline T. Mathis

Caroline T. Mathis (Virginia Caroline Thomas Mathis) of Miami, Florida and Cypress, Texas passed away peacefully on Monday, May 3, 2021 surrounded by her family.

Caroline was born on August 25, 1939 to the Reverend Willard Gillreth Thomas and Virginia Caroline (Hart) Thomas in Wadesboro, North Carolina. She moved to Mount Holly in 1944, then to Asheville in 1949 when her father became the minister at the West Asheville Presbyterian Church. She loved her mountains.

Caroline graduated at the top of her class at Lee Edwards High School (now Asheville High School) in 1957, and had been active in the school band. She was a member of the National Honor Society and was awarded a National Merit Scholarship. She attended Agnes Scott College and graduated with high honors with a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry in 1961, and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa. In 1960, between her Junior and Senior years, she completed a Summer Research Fellowship at Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee.

She then earned a Master of Science in Physical Chemistry, supported by a National Science Foundation Fellowship, from Emory University in 1963. Her research focused on Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR). After her graduate work, she worked as a pharmaceutical research chemist at the University of Miami School of Medicine performing cancer research.

She met her future husband Dr. Roswell Earl Mathis, Jr., DDS on a blind date in 1960 while they were both students in Atlanta. They married in 1963, then lived in Montgomery, Alabama where Ros was serving as a Captain in the Air Force. In 1965, they settled in Miami, Florida where Ros established his dental practice in Coral Gables. Caroline dedicated the next chapter of her life to raising her four children. Rock was born in 1964, followed by Allyson (1966), Jennifer (1970), and Kimberly (1973). Highlights of those years included many trips to grandparents’ homes in Asheville, North Carolina and Lake Placid, Florida; supporting her children in a wide variety of sports; and instilling in them a core set of values which she embodied every day. All four children are uniquely accomplished and successful.

In 1980, Caroline began teaching Science at Palmer High School. In 1984, she moved to Ransom Everglades High School, where she loved her students and teaching AP Physics. The College Board recognized her for her students’ success on the AP Exams. She retired from teaching in 2007, but continued to tutor and inspire students for nearly the next decade.

In 2011, after Ros’ death, she lived with Jennifer in Cypress, Texas and also spent time with Rock on St. Simons Island, Georgia. She loved attending Emily’s and Aubrey’s ballet recitals and Rocky’s baseball games.

Beyond her family and science, she loved sports—especially Rice University baseball and football. She tried to never miss watching or listening to a game. She also loved orchids, hummingbirds, the smell of lavender, tea, Scotland, Miami, and talking to her children. She greatly admired her sister Martha.

Caroline was 81.

Caroline is survived by her children, Roswell Earl Mathis, III, PhD (Rock) and his wife Gamary Perez-Galan Mathis, Allyson Caroline Mathis, Jennifer Lynne Parks and her husband Sean Christopher Parks (Chris), and Dr. Kimberly Patricia Mathis, MD and her husband Charles Edward Hatchwell; grandchildren, Emily Caroline Parks, Roswell Earl Mathis, IV (Rocky), and Aubrey Elizabeth Parks; stepgrandchildren, Maya Alexandra Hatchwell and Samantha Louise Hatchwell (Sam); and sister Martha Thomas Demaree and her husband Robert Hall Demaree, Jr. (Bob).

Contributions in her memory may be sent to St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital.

A graveside service for her family will take place in Green Hills Cemetery in Asheville, North Carolina on Tuesday, May 11.

A memorial service will be held in Miami, Florida in August, with details to be finalized at a later date.