Carolyn May (Smith) Cosby

Carolyn May Cosby (nee Smith)

April 13, 1943 - January 27, 2026

It is with deep sadness that we announce the passing of our beloved wife and mother, Carolyn May (Smith) Cosby, on January 27, 2026 at Health Sciences North, Sudbury, at the age of 82. Daughter of the late Earnest and Ella (Garbutt) Smith, Carolyn was born on April 13, 1943 at the Mindemoya Hospital.

She grew up in Sheguiandah where she enjoyed many active pursuits such as swimming, baseball, figure skating, women’s hockey and broomball, along with more quiet activities like drawing, reading mystery novels, and participating in the activities of the local 4-H Homemaking Club. As a young girl she attended the S.S. #2 Howland School, in the one room schoolhouse on Townline Road, before moving on to Little Current High School for Grades 9 to 12, and then beginning Grade 13 at Espanola High School. After High School, Carolyn studied Nursing in Sudbury, later working as an RNA in hospitals first in Sudbury and then in Little Current. After leaving Nursing she worked as a secretary at the S.S. #2 Howland School, in the new building on Highway 6.

On August 1, 1970, she married Thomas Wayne Cosby in a small quiet ceremony in the living room of her parents’ home, with a reception following at the Sheguiandah Hall. Carolyn and Wayne celebrated their 55th anniversary in 2025. By the time they moved to the new home that they built in Espanola in 1975, they had three children, and Carolyn chose to become a fulltime wife and mother, the latter a job at which she was particularly good, actively participating in her children’s lives and activities. She started a 4-H Homemaking Club in Espanola, helped with school projects, and attended plays and Science Fairs that involved her three children.

While she was a great mom, she also made time for her own interests trying out yoga, meditation, belly dancing and bowling, where she made many new friends. Part of each summer was spent back on Manitoulin at the cottage where she enjoyed swimming, boating, and visiting with family. As her children grew up and needed less of her time, she decided to go back to school part time and earned a diploma in Gerontology through correspondence.  

About thirty years ago, Carolyn returned to Sheguiandah to care for her aging father where she remained until her hospitalization in December.

Carolyn will be truly missed by her loving husband, Wayne, her children, Angela, Dwayne (wife Abby) and Jason (friend Lee), her precious grandchildren Violet, Onyx, and Aksel, as well as her faithful feline friend, Pippin. She will be lovingly remembered by her siblings Charlie (wife Laurine) Smith, Ellwood “Pete” Smith (predeceased 1969), and Dianne Lecuyer. She will also be remembered with fondness by her nieces and nephew, Charline (Rob), Lisa (Jamie), David (Kaitlin), and Tina, as well as Wayne’s nieces and nephews, Sue (Wayne, predeceased), Janet (Bill), Linda (Brian), Judy (Mike), Russell (Erin), John (predeceased), Tom (Connie), and Betty Lynn (predeceased) (Don, wife Linda). Predeceased by her in-laws Tom and Alice (O’Brien) Cosby, her brother-in-law Jim (Anatalie) Cosby and sister-in-law Eleanor (Ross) Morphet.

We would like to thank the staff at the Little Current Hospital, York Extendicare, and Health Sciences North for their care of Mom and their support for our family during the last weeks of her life.

A celebration of life will be announced at a later date.

Cremation services are provided by Simple Wishes of the North, Sudbury, and Crystal Crematorium.

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