Obituary and funeral service: Lois Ann (Cochran) Carter, 85, of Monroe

Lois Ann (Cochran) Carter, 85, passed away peacefully in Monroe, Georgia on August 8, 2021. 

Lois was born on December 19, 1935, in Aiken, South Carolina. She was the first of seven children of Benjamin M. and Floria C. Cochran. She is survived by her six children, Robert (Kim) Carter, Sally (Joe) Piga, Ben (Joe) Carter, Lydia (Travis) Batchelor, Mary Beth (Pat) Gaffney, and Gary Michael Carter and her thirteen grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. She is also survived by three sisters: Elizabeth Langford, Jayne Crane, and Wynette Stevens. She is preceded in death by her parents, brother Benjamin Cochran III and sisters Floria Nan Braswell, and Pearl Cochran.

Her family settled in Monroe, GA shortly after Lois was born and operated the Monroe Foundry on South Broad Street until 1976. After her father’s untimely death in 1956, Lois took charge of the company and operated it until her mother was able to take on the challenge. The Foundry was an important part of her childhood and life. Lois graduated from Monroe Area High School. She and her family were founding members of Calvary Baptist Church in Monroe and she most-recently attended St. Stephen United Methodist Church in Monroe.

She and her late husband Robert L. Carter moved to the family cotton farm in Walnut Grove in 1960 to continue the cotton farming operation after Robert’s father’s death. During this time, Lois worked in Monroe for the Walton Tribune. They started their family in 1957 with the first born child, Robert L. Carter Jr. Having a total of 6 children with the last two, Mary Beth and Gary Michael, being twins who were featured on the cover of the Walton EMC magazine in 1966. The family moved to Lois’s childhood home town of Monroe in 1970 after retiring from farming. She worked as a substitute teacher in the Monroe schools where classes sometimes included her own children.

Lois served as VBS Director, Sunday School Teacher, and dedicated her personal life to Church and Family. She attended Georgia State College in Atlanta and went on to be a valued employee of the Federal GSA and National Park Service.  

Lois loved her six children, her husband, and her grandchildren. She enjoyed spending time with her faithful friends Shirley Breedlove and Carolyn Jones. She lived at home her entire beautiful life and was renowned for her Divinity candy.

Reposted courtesy of Meadows Funeral Home.