Dr. Carolyn Ann Culpepper, “Ann,” aged 81, of Brighton, MA, formerly of Memphis and Chattanooga, TN, passed away September 6, 2020.
She will be lovingly missed by her children: Katherine Marie Price Ranft (Joe), Penelope Anne Price Bichi (Mita), Allen Coleman Price (Ana); grandchildren: Patsy Culpepper Bichi, Henry Ranft Price, Wesley Ranft Price, Mateo Price-Otero; great-granddaughter Lindsay Abigail Bichi; sister Linda Sue Collins (Jim); dearest friend Catherine Anne Cole; ex-husband Robert Allen Price (Pam); several nieces and nephews, and her many friends and admirers.
She was predeceased by her brothers, Oran Earl Junior “Sonny,” and Charles Milton; and her parents, Oran Earl Senior “Cullie” and Sara Kate.
Beloved by family and friends for her independent spirit, ribald humor, charm, brilliance, generosity and eccentricities, Ann was known to work hard and play hard her whole life. She was born July 20, 1939 in Johnson City, TN, to a hard-working family of modest means, and grew up in Chattanooga. She declared at the age of eight that she was going to be a doctor. Her well-meaning mother said, “You can’t be a doctor; you’re a girl. You can either be a nurse or marry a doctor.” But when Ann’s mind was made up, nothing stopped her. She worked three jobs to put herself through University of Tennessee Medical School, graduating in 1965, the first and only female student, nine months pregnant with her first child.
While a student there, she wandered into an autopsy class, and saw a young teacher named Dr. Robert Price. He was bent over the open carcass of a dog, cigar in his mouth, ashes falling into the dog, demonstrating autopsy techniques, and she decided that this man was the perfect genetic contributor to the children she wanted to have. True to her independent spirit, she stayed in the marriage just long enough to produce three children. She and Bob remained friends her whole life.
She was Chief Pathologist at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Memphis, running the lab and performing autopsies. When a friend complimented her on her mink coat, she said, “It took eight autopsies to pay for this.” Her generosity and charitable nature gained her a reputation. Surviving family members and patients at the hospital knew they had only to call the pathology department and ask to speak directly to Dr. Culpepper, and all lab charges and autopsy fees would be waived.
Her ambitious drive and restless intellect made her a lifelong student. In addition to her Medical Degree, she earned a Master’s in Public Health from Harvard School of Public Health, a Master’s in English Literature from Cambridge University in England, as well as a Master’s in Business Administration from University of Memphis. She had a particular love of rare books and collected signed first editions of the entire body of work of her favorite author, Virginia Woolf.
Her curiosities and eccentricities were legion. Her many pastimes included world travel, sailing, track and field, off-road motorcycling, SCUBA, water skiing, bird watching, philately, numismatics and collecting rare books. Her revolving animal menagerie encompassed at various times over a dozen dogs and cats, especially the hairless variety, exotic goldfish shipped from Japan, a Vietnamese pig, pony, goats, sheep, heirloom chickens, and talking parrots, one of whom adopted the voice of Tom Brokaw and recited the news every night. She kept a freezer full of deceased goldfish because one of her many projects was performing autopsies on them in her spare time.
She was seemingly indestructible, and never suffered any chronic illness. In her last show of independence, she herself determined when it was her time to go, declaring right after her 81st birthday that she was now ready to die. She passed away of natural causes several weeks later, at her home in Boston, Massachusetts, where she had moved to be near two of her children. Her beloved cats and children were by her side. Her last words were, “I’m going to miss life.” When asked what she would miss most, she said, “Life itself.”
The family wishes to thank the compassionate caregivers of Good Shepherd Community Care, and staff of Providence House Assisted Living.
Per Ann’s wishes there will be no services, and her ashes will be spread at a later date. Donations may be made in her name to MSPCA-Angell.