Ema Nelle Carney

Ema Nelle (Smith) Carney, 94 years, passed away on Friday, December 14, 2018, in Concord, NH. She was surrounded by her children, grandchildren, and great-granchildren. Ema was born in Mullin, Texas on April 10, 1924, to Sally and Elzie Smith. She was one of 9 children. She was close to her siblings and parents. She had a twin sister, Isa Belle who she was especially close to. She was the last surviving member of her family. She met her husband of 64 years, Sidney Carney, on a blind date in Brownwood, Texas. Ema was working as a Harvey Girl at the Brownwood train station. This was during WWII and Sidney was in officer training school. Ema was a pioneer, breaking the racial barrier by marrying Sid who was a Choctaw Indian. After the war, Sid obtained his degree in accounting and they moved to Wilburton, OK where Sid taught at Eastern College. Ema stayed home raising their four children â€" Lance, Tana, Flint, and Mark. In 1956, Sid joined the Bureau of Indian Affairs and they moved to Arizona. Ema obtained her teaching degree from Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff. She taught on many Indian reservation schools as Sid was moved to different locations. Ema loved being an elementary school teacher. She taught in Dulce, NM, Hyattsville, MD, Salamanca, NY, and Anadarko, OK. She was known for helping children learn by performing in plays. She often said that she knew what was happening in any family in town by listening to the children.Emaâ€™s true passions were travel and golf. She loved to take road trips with her sisters and travel the country. She was the driver and was known for driving fast but managed to only get a few tickets. She also traveled overseas and only missed visiting Antarctica. When she retired from teaching at the age of 62, she took up golf to keep up with Sid. She and Sid played golf at Beaver Meadow almost daily when they were in Concord. They moved every year from Oklahoma to Arizona to New Hampshire to stay in 70-degree weather â€" perfect for golfing. She was known for hitting the ball straight and her putting skills. She was not shy about giving advice about golfing to anyone she was playing with. She came in second at the Senior Olympics in golf. She was an active member of the Suncook Senior Center where she played Klunk and Bingo. She had many great friends there. She belonged to St. Paulâ€™s Episcopal Church in Concord, NH where she attended with her son Mark and daughter-in-law Jan. Ema is preceded in death by Sidney (2005), son Lance Christian Carney (2014), and great-grandchild Roger Pheasdorf Jr (2016).She is survived by 3 of her children, Tana Diane Carney, and Sidney Flint Carney both of Scottsdale, AZ, and Mark Carney and his wife Jan Greer-Carney of Concord, NH. She has 12 grandchildren, Darren and Lance Carney, II of Salamanca, NY, Kellie (Soward) Garca of Grand Prairie, TX, Brent and Micah Tartsah, Rachel Preciado of Scottsdale, AZ, Joshua Greer-Carney of Portland, ME, Caleb Carney of Durham, CT, Ruth Koenigsbauer of Deerfield, MA, Zachariah Greer-Carney of Durango, CO, Rebekah Howard of Raleigh, NC, and Obadiah Oklahoshta Greer-Carney of Concord, NH. Additionally, she is survived by great-grandchildren, Andrew, Rena, Mikaya, Jacob, Ema, Elizabeth, Alanna, Ethan, Isaac, Xavier, Landon, Logan, Oliver, Madison, and Carter Leigh. She also leaves great-great-grandchildren, Lilianna, Drake, Roger III, and Andrew Jr.Prayer service will be at 6:00 P.M., Wednesday, December 19, 2018 at the Smith Funeral Home Chapel in Anadarko.Funeral services will be at 2:00 P.M. on Thursday, December 20, 2018 at the First United Methodist Church in Anadarko with Rev. Felecia Hensley officiating. Burial will be in the Memory Lane Cemetery in Anadarko. Funeral services are under the direction of the Smith Funeral Home in Anadarko, Oklahoma.Condolences may be sent to the family at www.smithfuneralservices.com**In lieu of flowers, please make donations to Concord Hospice or Suncook Senior Center.

Ema Nelle Carney

April 10, 1924 - December 14, 2018

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