Melissa Carson Zimmerman

Melissa Carson Zimmerman was born in Flagstaff, Arizona on May 23, 1983 and died on April 30, 2020 at her home in Troy, Ohio. Melissa lived most of her life in Arizona. She was brought back to rest in her hometown and was buried at the Show Low Cemetery on May 18^th.

As a small child, Melissa was lively, mischievous, and giggly. She planned out silly outfits and demanded multiple costume changes per day. She was loving and wildly devoted to the family’s steady stream of short-lived pets, a favorite of these being Arnold Schwarzenegger the hamster.

Melissa’s lifelong trademark was a frazzled blanket square she kept with her at all times, picking the fuzz off till it was bald.  The “picky blanket” went everywhere with her and it was a minor disaster when the last scrap was stripped bare and a new sacrificial blanket had to be found. Even as a cool teenager, Melissa’s “picky” was with her and lived in a metal Care Bears lunch box she used as a purse. Melissa's picking yielded thousands (if not millions) of round fuzz balls that have been sprinkled around the world, there is even a few in Europe.

The pride and joy of Melissa’s life were her two children, Addi and Alex. She loved them fiercely, like a mamma bear, and nothing was more important than her two wonderful daughters. For many years, Melissa worked nights so she could be with her children during the day. And later she took jobs at their school so she could be close by and on the same schedule. Melissa could be a tenaciously hard worker and would labor through pain and exhaustion for her family.

Melissa wanted the best life for her girls and was a selflessly dedicated mother. She was very involved in their schooling, spending hours helping with homework and special projects. She would drive them across town to better schools, to play dates, sleepovers, and even 90-minute round trips to a certain favorite restaurant. Late night snuggles, making homemade slime, and delicious meals of orange chicken and rice were her specialty.

Melissa also enjoyed some terribly corny movies. We challenge you to go find the Don Knotts classic “The Shakiest Gun in the West." Watch it and think of her each time you laugh out loud despite yourself.

Melissa was a sensitive soul, a loyal friend, a passionate defender for what she felt was right. Her pain and sorrows in this world were outshined by the love she had for the people she cared about. Although the end of her life was difficult and full of worry - Melissa never stopped being her caring, perceptive, and funny self. Every phone call with her would be peppered with her famous giggle, no matter how serious the conversation.

Left to carry on without her, are her heartbroken family and friends. Her daughters, Addi Carson and Alex Zimmerman, mother Dawna (Steve) Julian and father Ray Carson, sister Heather (Matthew) Monk and nephew Wyatt, step-sister Chelsea (Seth) Machen and step-brother Michael Julian, and her aunts and uncles, Gary Stansbury, Susan Stansbury, Bryan (Jammie) Stansbury, and Bruce Stansbury.