Carole Lynn Roxburgh

Published 12:00 am Sunday, June 22, 2025

A Celebration of Life service for Carole Lynn Roxburgh will be held on Thursday, June 26, 2025, at 11:00 a.m. in the Chapel of Green Acres Baptist Church with Rev. Lanny Bridges officiating. Visitation will be held at Stewart Family Funeral Home on Wednesday evening, June 25, 2025, from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. A private family burial under the direction of Stewart Family Funeral Home will be held at Rose Lawn Cemetery.
Carole passed away to be with her Lord and Savior on June 16, 2025, in Tyler, Texas. Carole Lynn Smyrl was born on March 1, 1949, in Tyler, Texas to Harold B. and Hazel M. Smyrl. Carole attended Tyler public schools and graduated from John Tyler High in 1967. Carole had a passion for music, played the piano and participated in choir in her school days. Carole was involved in her church at an early age where she sang in choir and taught Sunday school. After high school she attended Tyler Junior College.
In the Winter of 1966, Carole invited a young man to attend a Valentine’s dinner at her church. After he accepted the invitation, she casually mentioned he would need to wear a suit. Fortunately, he had one. When they arrived at the church on Saturday night, she was embarrassed when a banner welcomed everyone to the “Sweetheart Banquet”. Little did either of them realize that this was the beginning of a fifty-nine-year love affair! Carole and Clint Roxburgh were married on August 21, 1970.
Carole lived and worked in Dallas Texas for approximately two years before moving to Denton while Clint finished graduate school at The University of North Texas. After graduation in 1972 they moved back to Dallas where they worked and resided until moving to Tyler in October 1978. Shortly before moving to Tyler, their first child Christie was born and shortly after the move Kevin joined the family. Carole loved her role as mother and that became her full-time vocation. She never looked back.
Carole had a passion for people – particularly those in need. She volunteered for a period at the Texas Chest Hospital (now part of the UT Health system). Carole was involved in her church at Green Acres and developed a passion for missions, particularly foreign missions. Over the next two decades Carole went on mission trips with her church and other organizations to Russia, the Ukraine, Cuba, Germany and other countries. She found great joy in sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ. Later in life she finally convinced Clint to travel, and they visited many countries including Australia, New Zealand, Egypt, Israel, France, Germany, Canada, as well as other places in Europe, Asia, and the United States.
Carole developed a particular love for the names and attributes of God that led to her writing and publishing her first book To Know Him is to Know His Names. She found that the listing and biblical references could never be complete as she continually found more through her studies which resulted in multiple addendums. She wrote from a much more personal perspective in her second book titled Throw Down Your Stones, which dealt with lessons she learned in life and in raising her children and her husband. Carole loved teaching her international Sunday school class at Green Acres for almost two decades until her health forced her to give it up at the end of 2019.
Carole was preceded in death by her parents Harold B. and Hazel M. Smyrl as well as her younger brother Bryan Smyrl. Carole is survived by one sister, Brenda G. Piper and husband Jim of Midlothian, Texas, one niece, Suzanne Macon of Kemp, Texas and one nephew, James Simmions of Lindale, Texas.
She is also survived by her husband of almost fifty-five years Clint Roxburgh, daughter Christie Brooks of Tyler, Texas and son Kevin Roxburgh and his wife Melissa of Kauai, Hawaii. Carole adored her grandchildren, Kaytlenn Longino (husband Cody), Austin Gothard (wife Mallory), Corbin Brooks, Trenton Brooks and the newest born in February 2025, Ruby Bliss Roxburgh. While Carole never got to meet Ruby, she would smile really big when she got to see pictures and people gave her congratulations. Carole also had three great-grandchildren, Kinslee Longino, Whitlee Longino, and Myla Gothard.
Special thanks to Prestige Estates Assisted Living and Memory and all of care givers there that became like family, took such good care of Carole, and truly became her best friends. She loved each of you. Thanks also to Hospice of East Texas and especially to Tammy and Peggy, who provided such compassionate care at a time when Carole needed it the most.
If desired, memorials may be made to the charity of your choice or to those that were special to Carole. Green Acres Baptist Church – Missions Dept, 1607 Troup Highway, Tyler, Texas 75701; Hospice of East Texas, 4111 University Blvd., Tyler, Texas 75701; Tyler Junior College Foundation – scholarships, P.O. Box 9020, Tyler, Texas 75711.