Carolyn Elizabeth (Otto) Sisson

May 5, 1943 - December 24, 2019

Beloved wife and mother Carolyn Elizabeth (Otto) Sisson, 76, of Corvallis, OR, died unexpectedly at home on December 24, 2019, just a day after her family had gathered for Christmas. A native of Woodbury, N.J., Carolyn was born to Ferdinand Philip Otto and Helen Frances (Ross) Otto on May 5, 1943, and graduated from Stephens College in Columbia, MO. She met her husband James R. Sisson in Philadelphia, PA. They celebrated their 53rd wedding anniversary just a month ago. The couple first lived on Philadelphia’s historic Washington Square not far from Independence Hall. Their life together took Carolyn, Jim, and their two children to six states before they settled in Corvallis in 1988, where their son Andy currently resides. Daughter Barbara teaches at Ripon College in Ripon, WI. Carolyn and Jim were always extremely active in the Boy Scouts and Girls Scouts – a shared passion that surrounded them with children and teens even after their kids grew up. Generations of scouts learned outdoor skills under their tutelage. Besides her many roles in scouting, Carolyn was an active member and past president of chapter BP of the Philanthropic Educational Organization (P.E.O.). Carolyn was also a devoted genealogist, whose research broadened her whole family’s understanding of their roots. Until her retirement in 2005 she served as the administrative assistant in the office of the First Christian Church in Corvallis. She is preceded in death by her parents, and survived and deeply missed by her husband Jim, children Andy and Barbara Sisson, brother Philip Frederick Otto, sister-in-laws Rebecca (Bean) Otto and Ann Louise (Sisson) Emro, nieces Alexandra Otto and Ann Marie Cooper, and nephew Ross Otto. A memorial service will be held at 2 pm on Saturday, Jan 4, 2019 at her church, Oakville Presbyterian, 29970 Church Rd, Shedd, OR. Memorial gifts to support Corvallis-area Girl Scouts may be made by directing donations to Service Unit 29 of the area’s council, Girl Scouts of Oregon and SW Washington. You may share thoughts and memories with the family at www.mchenryfuneralhome.com.