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Coreania Carter
In Memory of
Coreania H.
Carter
1916 - 2014
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Obituary for Coreania H. Carter

Coreania H.  Carter
Coreania Hayman Carter was born on March 5, 1916 to the late Rev. O.J. Hayman and Leila Rebecca Polk in Princess Ann Maryland. She had five siblings, Clara, Ruth, Titus, Lorenzo and Lillian, all of whom preceded her in death.

She received her primary education in the schools of Maryland. She then furthered her studies at Wiberforce University and graduated with a BA in music education. She also did further study at Howard University (DC) University of Arizona (AZ) and Julliard school of Music (NY). Following college, Mrs. Carter taught at Daniel Payne College, in Alabama and Dunbar Middle School in Tucson Arizona. While an educator, Mrs. Carter had a passion for music. She possessed a profound lyric soprano voice and was asked to perform throughout the country. She was eventually asked to join the Porgy & Bess Broadway Production, with who she traveled extensively to over 45 different countries. Afterwards, she starred as Cindy Lou in the opera Carmen Jones. Despite her love for music, she decided to retire from signing and traveling to assist her husband in ministry.

In 1940 she was introduced to Rev. Julius Ceasar Carter by AME Bishop, Bishop Reid. In 1945 they married. In 1946, Rev Carter rejoined active duty in the military. At that time, Mrs. Carter was directing the choir at Allen AME Church, Jamaica. The church split and some of the members began independent worship at Crowe’s Funeral Home. Those members impressed upon Mrs. Carter to ask Rev. Carter to organize a church and be its pastor. She did, he accepted and under the anointing of God, Carter Community AME Church was born with the first services being held in Crowe Funeral Home in 1947. Many of the members were Broadway and professional musicians and performers. By 1947 Rev. Carter located a white frame building on Linden Blvd and moved the church to its first official church building location and had their first worship service in August 1948. That building was destroyed by fire in 1952 and in 1964 they broke ground and erected a new church and senior citizen complex on the same site, where Carter Community AME Church resides. While Rev. Carter was away serving his country, Mrs. Carter held the church together, including buying bricks for the facing of the building and also jumping on oil trucks to bring oil to keep the church warm for service. In 1965 the first senior citizen complex of its kind in the state of NY was completed and was dedicated.

Mrs. Carter was involved in many church ministries. Mrs. Carter organized the Bertha Faithful Missionary Society at Carter Community and served as its first president and as adviser until the end. She also was president of the AME Ministers Wives and Widows Alliance, president of the NY Interdenominational Association of Ministers Wives and Widows Alliance, Corresponding secretary of NY state and taught at the International Convention for eleven years. She is a life member of the AME Missionary Society and a life member of the International Association of Missionaries.

Music was a tremendous part of Rev. & Mrs. Carter’s lives. While Rev. Carter traveled across country and recruited 32 music major graduates to use their gifts in service to the Lord at Carter Community, Mrs. Carter opened her home to them and housed them until Rev. Carter helped them secure jobs and housing of their own. Together they created an unmatched music department par excellent. Twenty-two men and women answered the call to the ministry under Rev. Carter’s tutelage and Mrs. Carter’s care.

Mrs. Carter, affectionately known to members of Carter Community as “Ma-Ma” was laid to rest on Tuesday, October 14, 2014. Before she departed this life, she was blessed to see new life in the birth of her great-great niece, Acacia Soraya Baynard on her birthday, March 5th, whom she dubbed “MY baby”. Mrs. Carter has been a mother to many young people and families and the fruit of her nurturing labor is being enjoyed all over the world through the “Sons and Daughters” of Carter Community A.M.E. Church…. And the legacy continues.

She leaves to mourn her passing her great nephew and adopted son Raymond Baynard, Jr. (Terri), Nieces: Valerie Thomas Baynard (Ray, Sr.), Lorraine Ricks (Dennis), Jacquelyn Carver Hull (LeOtha), Ruth Carver Jones, Lynne Rozier (Vinston), Virginia Jones (Darrell), Renata Sheppard V’Estres; Nephews: Milton Thomas (Doralyn), Frank Caver Jr, (Barbara), James Carver (Corinne), Ronald Carver, (Cleo), and a host of great and great-great nephews, nieces, cousins and friends. Preceding in her death was her husband Julius C Carter, her parents and siblings, her adopted daughter, Evelyn Sheppard Grant: Nephew, Cornelius Thomas (Viola), and Nieces; Leila Alexander (Henry), Naomi Carver Horne (Eugene) and Darlene Sheppard

The song she gave us will always sing in our hearts.

Lovingly submitted,
The Family

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African Methodist Episcopal Church
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