SCARBOROUGH – Carol Johansen, a resident of Scarborough, Maine, passed away on February 25, 2020, at The Gosnell House Hospice after battling colon cancer. Carol was born in Sparta, Wis., in 1939 to Helen and Gerald Churchill, a minister in the Congregational Church. She is survived by her brother, Barry Churchill and preceded in death by her brother, Bruce, her parents, and her stepmother, Olive.

She was a ballet dancer in her youth and traveled to Europe at the age of 16 with the USO. She graduated from Redlands High School in 1956. Carol was married to G. Wallace Johansen from 1960 to 1979. After living in Cleveland, Ohio, and Milwaukie, Wis., the couple settled in Eugene, Oregon in 1964. Carol fiercely loved her three children, Scott Johansen (San Diego, Calif.), Jill Staggs (Silver Spring, Md.) and Peter Johansen (Boise, Idaho), and her six grandchildren. After obtaining her Ph.D. in Planning, Public Policy and Management from the University of Oregon in 1985, Carol taught for several years at the U. of O., working with international students and coordinating the internship program with the State Legislature. She later lived in Wheaton, Md., and worked with the EPA, OPM and the State Department while teaching at the University of Maryland.

Carol moved to Portland, Maine, in 1995 to pursue her dream of running a bed and breakfast which was called the BackCove Inn and she taught at the University of Southern Maine and at SMCC. Carol lived in Boise, Idaho, from 2010-2015 teaching at the College of Western Idaho, but returned to Westbrook, Maine, to be near the ocean with her two cats.

Carol loved to travel and explore the world, spending time in China, Italy, England, and Scotland. She was a dedicated mentor to the young people in her life and she cherished her family and friends.

A celebration of life will be held on August 28, 2020 at 4 p.m. at the First Congregational Church in South Portland, Maine. Due to COVID-19 concerns, please contact the family at jilljstaggs@gmail.com to find out more information. In lieu of flowers, donations in Carol’s memory can be made to the following:

a) First Congregational Church in South Portland, ME https://fccucc.org/;

or

b) the Boys and Girls Club of Southern Maine,https://www.bgcmaine.org/donate; or

c) Hospice Center of Southern Maine donate@hospiceofsouthernmaine.org.

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