Carolyn J. Haas

The snow is falling now, light as angel feathers. Every blade, every branch covered Quieting the world Cushioning the task. It is with great honor, privilege and sorrow that we write to you of the peaceful passing of our mother, Carolyn Joan Brint Haas.

So where to begin this story of a life? Knowing that time is not linear, we can choose any point on this journey’s circle. Thus, we begin with a recognition of her ancestors, those whose independent spirit and love of freedom and justice founded this nation. Mom was a descendant of the May flower, her family part of the Great Pilgrim Migration. Heroes from the Revolutionary War, The War of 1812, and The Tragic American Civil War fill places on her family tree. Her people helped settle Providence, Grand Rapids, Whitehouse and Sylvania, Ohio. She was proud of her heritage.

Centuries later on the time circle, on a Thursday morning, November 1st, 1934, Carolyn Joan was born to her parents, Leroy J. and Cleo D. Minnick Brint in Holland, Ohio. She was a child of the Great Depression and shared many stories of those times. “We were poor, but we were ALL poor, and we were happy”. The red raspberries that grew on their land were harvested and sold by the side of the road, earning enough money to pay the taxes and prevent foreclosure on the family home. Her mother always had enough to share from the family food stores to offer a sandwich to the homeless men who would come to the back door, searching for work, food, or both. Perhaps this was the genesis of her later concern for the homeless and disenfranchised populations of today.

It was during her elementary school years when America entered into the Second World War. She was an independent child, and would ride the city bus, by herself, to Toledo to visit her beloved grandparents, Frank and Edith Mae Crosby Minnick. She reminisced about going to the 5 cent matinee movies, selling greeting cards and seed packets door to door, and making dress patterns for her dolls. She remembered V-E Day, when Germany surrendered and everyone left their homes to celebrate in the streets, banging pots and pans in a great celebration of jubilant noise. Her brother served in the navy. She was a happy and well-loved child.

Her High School years were filled with the wistful times of bygone days. Ice skating parties, sledding parties, dances, bowling, movies, theater performances, writing for the school paper and cheerleading for her alma mater, the Springfield Blue Devils, (of whom she won a contest in renaming them from the Blue Zippers) filled her days. At one particular bowling party, she met her future husband, Ronald F. Haas of Perrysburg, OH. Young love blossomed and soon they joined in matrimony at St. Rose Church, Perrysburg, Ohio. She was 17 years young.

Marital bliss resulted with the growth of the family, 5 children within 12 years. The dreams and ambitions of our parents led them to purchase property in what was then a tiny little hamlet called Monclova, OH. There, they designed and built our family homestead, Shenandoah Stables.

Oh, those early years on Coder Road were golden. A Camelot. What began as a humble home with a three-sided shed as a barn and a backyard pet of a horse, grew into a nationally recognized, highly successful, world champion producing Quarter Horse Farm and Breeding Establishment. But between how it started and how it ended, there was a generation of life. As a young wife and mother, Mom had plenty of last-minute energy. Imagine holiday China, huge family gatherings, fresh cut Christmas trees with mountains of presents, horse drawn sleigh rides, summertime 4-H practice sessions, Christmas cookies, laundry nonstop, church on Sundays, neighborhood parties, long road trip summer vacations, and producing, directing and starring in the Monclova and Waterville Community Playshops. Her most notable performance was as vaudeville star Gypsy Rose Lee, and when she sang “Let Me Entertain You” she was dazzling in the spotlight. Family dinners were a nightly occurrence, and they were always hearty and delicious. Winter evenings were often spent in the barns, brushing the horses and checking the broodmares. She loved those quiet barn evenings, with her horses, kitties and dogs. Sometimes on a summer’s eve, she would walk down our country road and sit in an old, abandoned barn. She loved the way the light filtered through the cracks in the aged wood, the peace, quiet and solitude of the place. She said she imagined heaven as such. Later, this sentiment would provide inspiration for her artwork.

She became an artist after the lights went out. When her husband, partner and our father died after a very brief illness on Friday, February 28, 1986, the grief was almost insurmountable. She found relief and healing in her paintings, and produced work that is valued for its beauty, honesty and emotional statement. She showed her work on more than one occasion in San Francisco, CA.

San Francisco, CA was her favorite city. She loved its beauty, history, architecture, open thinking, art, and especially its diversity. But mom traveled to many places, including 49 states, Mexico, Canada and the Caribbean Islands. She spent many months of the year living in a hotel in San Francisco, making friends, laughing a lot and being close to her son Brent. She was brave enough to try the high elevations of Rico, Colorado for the summer months for a few years, visiting her daughter Lisa. She loved the mountains too. The wildness and beauty. Mom loved to read, and she was an intelligent reader. No easy beach reads for her, she delved into history, biographies and philosophy. She was a Renaissance woman. Elevated, Artistic and Earthy.

Mom was busy, boredom did not sit well with her. The slot machine arm was her friend, and it was good for her. More often than not, she was lucky at the casino.

She loved going out with friends, having a whiskey sour, a cigarette and listening to good music. She was an excellent dancer. And singer. Blues, Reggae, Country, or Jimmy Buffet, it didn’t matter, mom loved it all.

Mom was authentic, comfortable and smart. Brilliant, really, with a memory like a steel trap.

Being born under the Scorpio sign on the zodiac, mom knew how to sting. But no matter, there was always enough love to find our way back to each other.

Mom was beautiful. Stunning. And she had style too. Her clothes were elegant and impeccable. But she also loved kicking off her high heels and putting on jeans and top siders to go out to the barn and be with her horses again.

Mom believed in miracles, having witnessed divine grace in her loved ones’ lives. Raised in the Lutheran Church, she converted to Catholicism upon her marriage to dad. She was a member of St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in Maumee, Ohio. However, later, she became interested in other theologies, particularly in the Zen Buddhism Teachings.

Mom loved a good story and a good time. And her family, above all her family.

And mom was a good mother. So, what if one of us occasionally got forgotten at an after-school event, our MIA status would be discovered by dinner time and soon dad or her would come fetch us. No harm, we learned to be strong, independent and hearty, like her, like her ancestors. And we always had more than we needed, a beautiful dream of a childhood filled with country air, old barn smells and distant views.

We were so fortunate to spend these end of year holidays with her. They were precious, warm and wonder filled.

So that brings us to this point in the circle of time that we call now. The snow has settled, as the grayness of the day darkens into the blackness of the night. The tree branches are bent with heaviness. Our hearts are filled with heaviness too. We grieve, deeply, for ourselves only, for the great emptiness that crowds the room with her passing, because we know that she is being received by the many loved ones who prepared the way for her, who are guiding her to the love and light, and are making a great celebration of jubilant noise.

Mom is preceded in death by her parents, Leroy and Cleo Minnick Brint; her husband, Ronald F. Haas; her brother Ray Brint, Sr. and many friends and relatives. It is the unfortunate benefit of a long-lived life.

She is survived by her 5 children: Jeff (Gail) Haas, Michelle Haas Nelson, Lisa Haas, Renee (Steve) Lack Haas and Brent Haas.

Her 5 grandchildren John (Brooke), Andrew, Colin (Miranda), Clayton and Taylor, and her 2 great-grandchildren Aiden and Willow will especially feel her absence, she loved them all so very, very much.

Her best friend of 83 years Katie; her sister-in-law, Evie (Aunt Sis); and her Coder Road friend, Ruth Ann, all held a special place in her heart, and we, her children send our condolences and love to them also.

On behalf of mom, we extend the following requests: In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to Rustbelt Zen. A 501c3 nonprofit, created by her son and recently ordained Zen priest Brent Haas, that provides healing and positive Zen practices to those who find themselves diseased by modern life, with special attention to substance abuse recovery.

Go to www.rustbeltzen.org/donate A donation to The Cherry Street Mission Ministries, our local organization that provides food and shelter to our homeless population. Go to www.cherrystreetmission.org, Performing an act of kindness for an elder, A visit to the Toledo Museum of Art, opening your mind and expanding your heart, and finally, remembering always, that Love is the Answer.

We will miss you mom. So, so much.

“Well done, good and faithful servant” A Sacrifice of the Holy Mass will be offered on Thursday, February 22, 2024, at 6:30pm at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Maumee, Ohio, with a celebration of life to be held later in the Spring.