She was only 61 years old. Carla was in 6th grade when she started her love of writing. She excelled at short stories and poems and this love continued throughout her lifetime. Carla met the love of her life Henry Rick working at a Lawn Company at just 16 years old. They tied the knot in November of After marriage they went on to have three children, Joshua, Chantelle, and Demetrius.
From that point, Carla went on to work many security jobs that she loved. She was a Neighborhood Watch Block Captain. Her favorite job was working an internship for a state senator. In , she was diagnosed with stage 3 melanoma skin cancer. She fought a hard battle with it and beat it.
After that battle, she decided to start exploring her interests more. Her most favorite activity, was going to the Great Plains Zoo. She was an avid animal lover and that showed in her photos. She became a volunteer photographer at the zoo for many years.
She had her photos occasionally published in larger papers in other states. Carla had a certain bond with the animals that was very unique. She knew every single animals name and they always seemed to know when she was there. After her second cancer diagnosis, she continued to walk at the zoo. Her doctors encouraged it. The animal she visited the most, by far, was the eagle Matilda. She said the eagle gave her her strength and inspiration on days she was feeling down.
She was fighting to get hospitals to have adult diapers readily available for patients of Crohns, IBS, and cancer who have to get scans or go in for treatments. She was fighting with Medicare to get them to fully cover adult incontinence products. She was also an advocate for Skin Cancer awareness and appeared on the local news one night to share her story briefly.
