Emily Carol Long Strider

Ms. Emily “Carol” Long Strider, 73, died Wednesday, January 10, 2024, at The Pinnacle in Oxford, MS. The funeral will be Saturday, January 13, 2024, at 2:00 P.M. in the Chapel of Waller Funeral Home with Rev. Warren Black officiating. Visitation will be held prior to the service beginning at 12:30 P.M. Burial will take place in Little Prairie Cemetery in Caruthersville, MO.

Carol was born on Halloween Day, October 31, 1950, to the late Bob and Betty Long in Braggadocio, MO. Bob was a Banker and Betty a stay-at-home mother, who Carol once described as Ward and June Cleaver. Coming from the most rural of upbringings, Braggadocio was more like a family homestead than a town. Her grandfather was the Post Master and ran the little General Store, and most of the farmers in town she knew as uncle, cousin, or friend. The days of Carol’s carefree childhood were made up of riding horses, jumping in the cotton trailers, camping in the backyard, playing ball with her younger brothers, and playing the piano each Sunday at church. Once she became an adult, and aged in a world much different than the one she grew up, she realized just how fortunate she was to come from idyllic Braggadocio, and worked hard to bring the same magic into the lives of her children and students.

After graduating high school, she headed South to Oxford where she enrolled at Ole Miss. She quickly fell in love with Mississippi and stayed until her death. Carol married and lived in Charleston, MS, where she raised her two children, Lauren and Henry. In 1999, she returned to Oxford, where she quickly got involved with her community, joining Oxford University United Methodist Church, The Oxford Garden Club, Ole Miss Delta Gamma Alumni, and Habitat for Humanity. Carol began working for the Oxford University School, where she taught for three years before beginning her career in 2000 as a Psychometrist for the Lafayette County School District, a job she held until just recently. Carol would spend her days performing gifted screenings and working with Special Education Students. A gifted and lifelong educator, her calling in life overflowed into every aspect of her life. After her retirement, she shared her wealth of knowledge with her precious grandchildren. At The Pinnacle, she lovingly remembered the children of each nurse and caretaker and always had a recommendation ready for what book they should read next. A teacher until the very end, Carol left her family with a final charge, “Go out and let your lights shine through your smiling faces and your giving hearts.” In addition to her parents, Carol was preceded in death by her brother, Charles Frank Long.

Carol is survived by her daughter, Lauren Strider Massey (John) of Oxford, MS; son, Henry Clarence Strider, IV (Larisa) of Philipp, MS; brother, Leslie Long and his wife, Janet, of Dallas, TX; and three grandchildren, Henry Clarence Strider, V, Christian Strider, and Bella Trusty.

Expressions of sympathy or memorial contributions in Carol’s memory may be made to Oxford University United Methodist Church, 424 South 10th Street, Oxford, Mississippi 38655 or to Regents School of Oxford, 14 County Road 130, Oxford, Mississippi 38655.