Wednesday, July 12, 2023

CAROL ANN (HINES) HOFFMAN - June 30, 2023

 In Memory of


CAROL ANN (HINES) HOFFMAN

CAROL ANN (HINES) HOFFMAN passed away peacefully at home in the wee hours of Friday, June 30, 2023, in Kansas City, Missouri. She was born on September 13, 1947, to Bill and Lewene (Leland) Hines in Lockhart, Texas.

She is survived by her husband of 39 years Ken Hoffman, their daughter Nicole Johnson Bratton (Jeff), brothers John Hines and Paul Hines (Peggy), sister Deborah Hines Day (Roger), granddaughter Towne Bratton, nephew Travis Echert (Hannah), niece Susan Hines Graham (Charlie), nephew Sam Hines, sister-in-law Diane Hoffman Nims (Chris) their son Adam (Amie), and the very close extended families of Tonya and Mike Walker and Joni and Jerry Kruntorad. Survivors also include countless cousins, high school buddies, former neighbors in Austin, Texas and Parkville, Missouri, and friends from all walks of life in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. She made instant connections and genuine friends wherever she went. She tended to be a rebel and to attract other rebels. They know who they are. None will ever forget her.

She was predeceased by her parents and her nephew, Ryan Echert.

Because her father was career Air Force, the family lived in several places around the U.S. and the world, including Japan, France, and Germany, before finally landing at Randolph Air Force Base in San Antonio, where she graduated in 1965 from Randolph High School.

Carol Ann attended the University of Texas at Austin for a year and then went to work in the Office of the Texas Secretary of State. Ultimately, she spent a decades-long career as an extraordinarily skilled legal secretary, paralegal, and law office manager. She was so smart, perceptive, and resourceful that she could have easily been a highly successful lawyer if she had been so inclined. Instead, as she liked to say, she trained a lot of lawyers!

Carol Ann was a special person who meant so much to so many it is very difficult to describe her in a few words. She was devoted to her husband, family, and friends almost to a fault. She was quietly tough-minded and resilient with an inner strength of will that was sometimes to her detriment because of her selflessness. Despite her gregariousness, she was also a very private person who never outwardly sought credit for the many things she did for others as a wife, mother, grandmother, sister, aunt, mentor, advisor, confidant, and friend. She was a talented chef who could prepare a meal from almost anything except fish. She hated fish. She had an uncanny knack for finding cafés and restaurants and picking the best (but not the most expensive) items on the menu, even in cities and countries where she had never been.

Carol Ann was famously frugal yet unflinchingly generous. “Plan” was one of only a few four-letter words she refused to use. She had definite opinions but was non-judgmental of others. She loved: snow; all of Canada, especially Quebec City; parties of two to 200; spicy food, especially Mexican; hole-in-the-wall cafés; visiting old cemeteries; grocery shopping so she could make a new dish she had thought of; reading cookbooks but never following the recipes exactly as written because her changes made them better; and giving her husband, family, and friends grief in some hilarious way. It was almost impossible to have the last word with Carol Ann. It remains to be seen if her passing will change that.

Above all, Carol Ann was loving and loyal, compassionate and kind. She will be forever loved and missed, and her memory will be cherished.

Carol Ann was a registered organ donor. Following her cremation, a small family gathering is planned. Impromptu celebrations of her life are likely in the near future. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to either or both of the following charitable organizations:

Feed Northland Kids -- https://feednorthlandkids.org

Hillcrest Platte County - Family Transitional Housing --  https://hillcrestplatte.org


Condolences may be sent to her husband

Kenneth Hoffman

kenhoffman@kc.rr.com

5801 NW 63rd Street

#7407

Kansas City, MO 64151-3346

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