WINSTON-SALEM — Fleta Aline Hampton Carmen, age 93, of Winston-Salem, NC passed away on March 8, 2024.
Fleta was born and raised in Winston-Salem. She was the only child of Mary Ellen Cooper Hampton and Johnson Cliff Hampton. She attended Old Town School through the 10th grade and graduated from Reynolds High School. She received degrees from Mars Hill College and Appalachian State Teachers College. Early employment included a position at Wachovia Bank in Winston-Salem and teaching at what was then Clemmons High School in Clemmons, NC and at Kings Business College in Greensboro, NC.
Fleta married Herbert Anderson Carmen III in June, 1954, and they were married for more than 67 years. Herb and Fleta lived in Greensboro, NC for five years, before making a home in Burlington, NC, where they lived until his passing in Sept. 2021. After her children were older, she received a master’s degree in business education from UNC Greensboro and taught at Alamance Community College and Elon College. She volunteered with a number of organizations, including the Alamance County Arts Council, and after becoming a grandmother, worked for a time at Baby Bloomers in Burlington (consistent with the enjoyment of grandchild giving).
Fleta and Herb became members of First Presbyterian Church in Burlington in 1962. She served in a number of volunteer capacities and was active in Presbyterian Women for decades. Her long dedication as a faithful Kingdom servant was recognized in 2014 when she was honored with the Presbyterian Women’s Honorary Life Membership Award.
Fleta recently wrote that the joy of her life was being a wife, mother, mother-in-law, grandmother, and great-grandmother. She had a patient and generous spirit and was a consummate homemaker, dedicated to nurturing, loving, teaching, serving, and just being with her family. It was her prayer that, “God make me aware of your goodness today, so I can share it with others.”
Fleta is survived by Eve Carmen Isley (Charlotte) and husband Johnny and their children Jonathan and wife Anna, Michael, and Matthew; Andy Carmen (Winston-Salem) and wife Sheila and their children, Lindsay Roberts and husband Richard, Andrew Carmen and wife Natalie, and Hannah Newman and husband Zach; Patti Carmen Whitehead (Boone) and husband John and their children Bailey and Lyndsey; and ten great-grandchildren — Amelia, Daniel, Graham, Micah, Lucy, Jack, Ward, Harris, Olivia, and James.
A graveside service will be held at Forsyth Memorial Park on Yadkinville Road in Winston-Salem on Saturday, March 16, 2024, at 11 a.m., with a reception to follow. There will be a service to celebrate Fleta’s life at First Presbyterian Church in Burlington on Tuesday, March 19, 2024, at 2 p.m., with a reception to follow. Streaming will be available beginning at 1:50 p.m. at https://boxcast.tv/view/fleta-carmen-funeral-worship-maykxqovhfba3kawgbp4.
In lieu of flowers, the family suggests memorials to (1) First Presbyterian Church, 508 West Davis, Burlington, NC 27215; (2) Alley, Williams, Carmen & King Scholarship in Civil Engineering and Architecture, administered by Alamance Community Foundation, P.O. Box 726, Burlington, NC 27216, www.alamancecommunityfoundation.org/donate; or (3) a charity of the donor’s choice.
