Carole Belinda Payne Coleman, 87, passed away peacefully on August 18, 2026. She was born on January 12, 1939, in York County, Virginia, to the late James and Geraldine (Jordan) Payne.
Carole attended Bruton Heights School in Williamsburg, Virginia, graduating in 1957. She earned her bachelor’s degree in mathematics from Virginia Union University and taught for three years before earning her master’s degree from Morgan State College through the Math and Science Foundation Program for Teachers.
While teaching in Washington, D.C., Carole met Homer Ralphael Coleman on a blind date in 1966. They married in 1967 on the front lawn of her parents’ home at 1429 Penniman Road in Williamsburg, the same home where Carole was born. Together, they shared a life that took them to Maryland, New Jersey, Virginia, and Germany during Homer’s military service.
In June 1996, Carole and Homer moved to Bryson City, North Carolina, in Swain County, returning to the property where Homer grew up in the mountains of Western North Carolina.
Carole was an avid hiker and especially enjoyed walking the trails of Deep Creek in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, where she found joy in what she called “God’s creation.” She also cherished time with family and friends, reading, crocheting, teaching mathematics, exercising, traveling, singing, and listening to stories about Homer’s family and life in the mountains.
Above all, Carole was a woman of faith who cherished her family and sought to live a life of purpose and service. Her lifelong prayer was that those who came behind her would find her faithful and be faithful themselves.
Carole is survived by her beloved husband of fifty-nine years, Homer R. Coleman; daughter, Monica L. Haynes (husband, Mark); son, Jason R. Coleman (wife, Cara); grandchildren, Bryce Haynes, Mia Haynes, Gibraltar Coleman, Kezziah Coleman, and Titus Coleman; sister, Marjorie Alice Payne Kyle; her nephew Frederick Kyle, Jr. (Patricia), her niece Felicia Teeter (Paul), her nephew Franklin Kyle (Lois); her 102-year-old aunt, Ruby (Jordan) Thomas; and family who loved her dearly.
A service to celebrate Carole’s life will be held at Noon on Saturday, August 29, 2026, at St. John Baptist Church, with a viewing beginning at 11:00 a.m. Interment will follow in the church cemetery.
