Obituary of Carol Robins Flores

Carol Robins Flores -- Design Engineer, Santa Cruz business woman and long time volunteer for Norcal Golden Retriever Rescue -- died peacefully in her home on June 12th, 2011 Carol was born September 3, 1946 in Brookline Massachusetts where she grew up on Summit Avenue, attended Brookline High School and met her future husband, L. Noah Flores whom she married in 1970. Carol and Noah moved to California in 1975. She worked first at Teledyne Inc. of Mountain View as a test technician and then went to Analog Devices Inc. of San Jose and rose to the level of test engineer and then chip design engineer. Few, if any, women were employed in this kind of work at that time, but Carol was gifted and Analog Devices recognized that. While working, Carol put herself through school and graduated magna cum laude in 1996 from Cogswell Polytechnical College in Sunnyvale, with a BS in electrical engineering. Besides her professional career, Carol was devoted to animals, especially golden retrievers. After she retired from Analog Devices, she became a principal owner in Animal Spa of Soquel and Animal Hospital of Soquel, continuing to work with and for animals. Noah and Carol bought their Soquel home in the foothills above Santa Cruz in 1977, specifically for the natural beauty of the landscape. They loved Santa Cruz, the ocean and the mountains. Carol loved nature, and enjoyed hiking and skiing. In 1982, Carol and Noah divorced but remained close friends. Later, Carol met Samuel Robins of Santa Cruz , were partners for 18 years, and married in 2000. He also shared Carol's love for the mountains and ocean. They loved to ski in the Sierras and enjoyed special trips to Disneyland. Sam was a major contributor to Carol's work with Norcal Golden Retriever Rescue and provided her with many years of loving support as her liver related problems became debilitating. In 2007 Sam and Carol separated. When the complications from Carol's hepatitis C and liver related illnesses became more severe, Noah was there to support and care for her, eventually remarrying her in February of this year. Carol died peacefully at home on a bright sunny afternoon. She was a warm, loving and caring individual with a radiant smile who will be missed dearly by family and friends. Carol is survived by her husband, L. Noah Flores of Soquel, her ex-husband and close friend, Samuel Robins of Santa Cruz, her brother Robert Himbaugh of Brookline MA, and her many cousins throughout Massachusetts. She was preceded in death by her parents, George and Ann Himbaugh of Brookline MA. There will be a private memorial service at home in Soquel. Carol's family would like to thank the staff and volunteers of Hospice of Santa Cruz County and especially Carol's nurse Pat Cochran, for her compassion and professionalism in looking after Carol during this most difficult time. Thank you also to C.N. and Ed Gordon of HELP! (Help and Education for Liver Patients) where Carol found unparalleled educational and emotional support by regularly attending HELP! meetings in Santa Cruz. A very special thank you goes to her personal caregivers: Vigyano Bhatia, Angela Alarcon, Esther Guzman and Rosie Guzman who attended to Carol's every need with loving care, patience, diligence and affection throughout this long ordeal. And finally, thank you to Carol's good friends: Jane Massie and Adella Feran who have supported Carol for many years and were always there for her when she needed them. The family requests that any donations be sent to Hospice of Santa Cruz County ( www.hospicesantacruz.org/) and HELP! ( help4hcv.org ).