Carole May (Absher) DeRan of Bel Air, Maryland died on October 22, 2026 after a long illness. She was 84.

Carole was born July 15, 1942 in White Hall, Maryland. She was the daughter of the late Catherine E. Orr and the late S. Wade Absher. She was preceded in death by her husband of 50 years, Charles Harry DeRan, in 2020.

Carole spent her early childhood in Street, Maryland with her mother and stepfather, the late Joseph E. Orr, Sr. Her parents ran a grocery and feed store at the Street station of the Ma & Pa Railroad in the 1940s and early 1950s. When she was 10, her family moved to Hickory, where her parents and uncle built and opened the Bel Air Roller Rink. Carole and her siblings helped lay the rink’s maple floor and worked different jobs at the rink. She also competed in speed skating and figure skating competitions. In 2018 Carole’s history of the Roller Rink was published in the Historical Society of Harford County’s Harford Historical Bulletin.

Carole was a 1960 graduate of Bel Air High School. She attended the University of Maryland for one semester and Guilford College in Greensboro, North Carolina for one year, earning her bachelor’s degree from Towson State University in 1968 in Education. Carole taught social studies at North Harford High School from 1969 until her retirement in 1997 and was the Social Studies Department Chair from 1985-97.

Carole stayed active in the local community after her retirement. She served on the Board of Directors for the county’s League of Women Voters chapter. She was a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution, William Paca chapter. She was a member of the Historical Society and a founding member of the Hereditary Order of the Signers of the Bush Declaration, serving as its President in 2008-09. She also served as a docent for the Steppingstone Museum, where she gave tours discussing Harford County’s canning industry at the turn of the 20th century.

Carole is survived by her children, Craig DeRan (Adrienne) of Pylesville and Catherine DeRan of Shirlington, Virginia; a sister, Norma Phelps of Ormond Beach, Florida; a brother, Joseph E. Orr, Jr. of Raleigh, North Carolina; and two grandchildren. In addition to her husband, she is predeceased by a brother, Samuel Orr of Graham, North Carolina.

Visitation will be held on Friday, November 13, 2026, at 2:00 PM at McComas Family Funeral Homes in Bel Air, Maryland. A memorial service will be held on Saturday, November 14, 2026, at 11:30 AM at Highland Presbyterian Church.

In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to Highland Presbyterian Church.