Mildred Carter

Mildred Brown Carter was born February 22, 1927 to Eddie Washington Brown and Hester Lessie Lee Poston Brown in Leo, South Carolina. The Browns sharecropped a tobacco, corn and cotton farm during the years that Mildred, “Millie” went to school. Millie was the second of 6 children with sisters Audrey, Hessie, Verna, Janis and brother Eddie –nicknamed Buster—all of whom worked hard on the farm.
Millie graduated from Lake City High School with honors in the spring of 1943 and left on a train by herself at age 16 to start her career in Washington DC. Her older sister Audrey joined her a couple of weeks later. They both had been recruited by the Federal Bureau of Investigation to be clerks and they both received significant promotions. Two of her other sisters were also hired by the FBI. Millie moved into the “steno pool” to take dictation for correspondence. Her last position after almost 10 years with the FBI was as secretary to Associate Director Clyde Tolson.
Millie resigned from the FBI to marry Richard Bert Carter Jr. Millie had met Bert at the FBI and joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints while in Washington DC. Millie and Bert were married September 6, 1952 in the LDS chapel in the national capitol and were later sealed in the Salt Lake Temple. Their first home was in Lakewood, Ohio where 2 sons, Paul and Mark, were born. Millie and Bert moved to Yakima, Washington in 1955 where daughter Janis and son David were born. The family moved to Bellevue, Washington in 1965 where Millie acted as general contractor to build the family home. She did that and also worked as a school secretary for Hyak Junior High in the Bellevue Public Schools. In 1975, when Bert retired from the FBI, the family moved to Bountiful, Utah. Bert served a mission for the LDS Church and Millie began a new career at Bonneville International. She was the Executive Assistant to Arch Madsen, Joe Kjar, and Rodney Brady, also serving the Board of Directors in taking their meeting minutes before she retired.
Millie loved her ward members in Bountiful and her many friends in the Salt Lake area. She maintained her friendships throughout her life from Cleveland, Ohio and both Yakima and Bellevue in Washington. She was an active supporter of the genealogy efforts in her native South Carolina.
Millie enjoyed music and took piano and voice lessons so she could sing better in her ward choirs. She supported Bert’s extensive work in the Boy Scouts and Rotary, as well as supporting him in his church responsibilities. When her family was young, she would spend hours creating beautiful and fun holiday displays for her home and sewing dresses for herself and her daughter Janis. She also loved tending her colorful, cheerful flower gardens at her home. Millie always regretted having never gone to college, even though she was successful in her work. She encouraged and helped to make sure that every child and grandchild graduated from college or university.
Millie died peacefully on Sunday, August 18, 2013 surrounded by family She had expressed appreciation to the dozens of friends and family members who have cared for and encouraged her in recent months, including those at Heritage Place, Welcome Home, and to Ryan at Mountain Region Hospice.
She was preceded in death by her parents, her brother Buster, grandson Danny and her husband Bert. She is survived by her four children: Paul (Brenda), Mark (Carolyn), Janis Barton, and Dave (Annette); 13 grandchildren, and 17 great-grandchildren. She is also survived by the remaining four of “those five redheaded Brown girls:” Audrey, Hessie, Verna, and Janis.
Funeral services will be held on Friday, August 23rd at 11 am at the Mueller Park 3rd Ward building 1825 S 800 E, Bountiful, UT. A viewing for family and friends will be held Thursday, August 22nd 6-8 pm at Russon Brothers Mortuary, 295 North Main Street, Bountiful, UT and Friday at the church one hour prior to services. Interment will take place at the Bountiful Cemetery.
In lieu of flowers, contributions are encouraged to the Three Rivers Historical Society, 414 N Main Street, Hemingway, SC 29554. Millie will be smiling for all eternity knowing that friends supported her “South Carolina genealogy society” in her name.