Carla McDowell, age 62, resident of Anchorage, Alaska, since the early ’80s, died at home on June 7, 2015, after a valiant battle against colon cancer.
Friends are invited to a potluck celebration of Carla’s life at the Centerpoint Building on C Street in Anchorage at 3 p.m. Saturday, June 13, 2015.
Carla was born in Selma on March 14, 1953. Like many Alaskans of the time, Carla came to visit a friend and never left, stating that Alaska was “Heaven on Earth.”
Carla greeted customers and co-workers with a bright smile and a charming, professional demeanor for more than 30 years while employed at Brinkerhoff Drilling Co., Dynamic Properties and finally at Alyeska Title Co.
She enjoyed spending time with her friends and sharing stories of her childhood growing up on her grandpa’s farm. She was a spiritual person and felt that throughout her life she was with God and surrounded by the angels.
She attended services at the Sunset Hill Baptist Church.
Everyone Carla touched understood her love for all animals. Her time at home was often spent with a newspaper and, later a computer, searching the classified ads to match missing pets with their distraught owners. All of the animal shelters, rescue organizations and many of the local veterinarians know Carla by name and reputation as she rescued and re-homed countless dogs and cats.
The love and focus of her life was her daughter, Jessica, that she affectionately called “Totie” because she toted baby Jessica everywhere. Later she would don her boots and head for the Chugach Mountains toting Jessica in a backpack as she hiked the Power Line Pass and surrounding area.
Carla is survived by her devoted and loving daughter, Jessica McDowell of Anchorage, Alaska; her brother, Rex McDowell Jr. and his wife, Ellen of Dallas, Texas; her stepsister, Sue Steele of Atlanta, Ga.; and numerous nieces, aunts and uncles.
She was preceded in death by her father, Rex McDowell Sr.; and her mother, Frances McDowell Steele.
Jessica requests that memorial donations be made to Friends of Pets or your favorite animal rescue organization.