Carolyn Ruth Eberly Blaney, 96, of Chalk Hill, Pa., passed away on Friday, May 8, 2020 at home. She was born April 18, 1924, in Allison, Pa., a daughter of Orville Eberly and Ruth (Moore) Eberly.
In addition to her parents, Carolyn was preceded in death by her husband, William Gerald (Jerry) Blaney, in 2015; her son, Douglas O. Blaney, in 1971; a granddaughter, Allison Debor; her sister, Margaret George; her brother, Robert E. Eberly; and her son-in-law, Kent Carter.
Carolyn graduated from Uniontown High School with the class of 1942. She then attended West Virginia University, where she graduated in 1946 with a degree in speech and an emphasis in drama. Carolyn remained active in the WVU community, supporting the University’s vision and its students. Carolyn served on the board of the WVU Foundation for many years, and on the visiting committee for the Eberly College of Arts and Sciences. Carolyn was named WVU’s most loyal Mountaineer in 1992 and was inducted into the Order of Vandalia, the University’s highest service honor, in 1995. Carolyn received an honorary doctorate from WVU in 1998 and the College of Creative Arts Dean’s Award in 1999.
Carolyn was well-known in the Uniontown community for her philanthropic endeavors. As a past president and trustee of the Eberly Foundation, and as a trustee of the Eberly Family Charitable Trust, she was instrumental in providing numerous gifts to WVU, the Eberly Campus of Penn State University at Fayette County, and California University of Pennsylvania, as well as donations to a variety of charitable causes in western Pennsylvania and northern West Virginia.
Carolyn was an active member of Saint Paul’s Evangelical Lutheran Church. She was an active participant in the Auxiliary at Uniontown Hospital for more than 60 years, and the president of the Auxiliary for several years. Carolyn was a founding member of the Uniontown Green Gardeners, and was a flower show judge with her mother and her sister, at both local shows and at the Philadelphia Flower Show. She and her husband Jerry were members of the Uniontown Country Club for many years and were avid supporters of the Uniontown State Theater of the Arts.
Carolyn was also a talented potter and ceramicist. She spent many years at Touchstone Center for Crafts in Farmington learning and perfecting her art and supporting the artists in residence there.
Carolyn enjoyed playing bridge and poker with her friends, traveling with Jerry and friends from the West Virginia Ambassadors to exotic destinations, philanthropy and spending time with her grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
Left to cherish Carolyn’s memory are her daughter, Ruth B. Carter, of Chalk Hill; four grandchildren, Dana Pancoast, of Lithia, Fla., Kelly Debor, of Largo, Fla., Sarah Carter, of Uniontown, Pa., and Aden Carter, of Clearwater, Fla.; four great-grandchildren, Alexander Chapman, Liam Pancoast, Cullen Pancoast and Aaralyn Carter; a daughter-in-law, Cynthia Conley, of Safety Harbor, Fla.; and several special nieces, nephews and cousins.
Arrangements have been entrusted to the Andrew D. Ferguson Funeral Home & Crematories, Inc., 80 Morgantown St., Uniontown, Pa., where family and friends may call from 2-4 p.m. and 7- 9 p.m. Tuesday May 12. Appropriate social distancing measures will be observed.
A private interment will follow at Sylvan Heights Cemetery. Due to the COVID-19 restrictions, a memorial service celebrating Carolyn’s life will be held at a later date.
Donations in Carolyn’s memory may be made to the following: Uniontown Hospital, 500 West Berkley St., Uniontown, PA 15401, St. Paul’s Evangelical Lutheran Church, 71 N. Gallatin Ave., Uniontown PA 15401, West Virginia University Foundation, One Waterfront Place, 7th Floor, P.O. Box 1650, Morgantown, WV 26507-1650.
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