Phebe Ann Carpenter Sproles, a longtime resident of New Orleans, passed away peacefully on June 11, 2019, at her Mid-City home surrounded by close family. Known to her family and friends as Penny, she was born in Cohoes, New York, the daughter of Ansel Denison Carpenter and Ruth Carpenter (nee Richardson).
Penny graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a Bachelor of Arts in Education and went on to earn a Master’s degree from Vanderbilt University. She devoted her career to teaching with an emphasis on preschool and Kindergarten aged children. She taught for thirty years in Orleans Parish public schools and while teaching, went back to school to earn an additional Master’s degree in Early Childhood Education from the University of New Orleans. Later, she taught preschool at Lakeview Presbyterian Day School, where she continued to nurture young learners, creating a classroom environment where they could grow and blossom.
Penny was an active member of Lakeview Presbyterian Church, serving dutifully as a Church Elder for nearly a decade while regularly teaching Sunday School. In addition to her work with the church, Penny was dedicated to community service, playing an instrumental role in the early beginnings of STAIR (Start the Adventure in Reading).
At home and outside of home, whether providing meals for Katrina volunteers, her church or hosting relatives and friends in her home, she was a consummate hostess and her stacks of well-worn cookbooks attest to her culinary talents. Penny was also a keen genealogist, and after tracing her ancestry back to the American Revolution, she became a proud member of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR).
Following in the tradition of her family, she wished to be buried in Oakwood Cemetery, surrounded by her most intimate family members, in the small town of Cohoes, where she grew up. She is survived by her husband, Elijah Thomas Sproles III; her three children, Elijah Thomas Sproles IV, Jessie Littlefield Carpenter Sproles, and Bryan Davidson Sproles; and her grandchildren, Oliver Aashwin Pendse, Lily Michaelene Sproles, and Elijah Thomas Sproles V. Penny’s family would like to express their heartfelt gratitude to the wonderful staff from Heart of Hospice for their compassionate care and much needed support. Penny will leave behind a family who will greatly miss her presence in their lives.
In lieu of flowers, please send donations to the Louisiana SPCA to honor Penny’s propensity to find, raise, and love abandoned kittens.
Arrangements have been entrusted to JACOB SCHOEN & SON FUNERAL HOME, 3827 Canal Street, New Orleans, LA 70119. Condolences may be expressed at www.schoenfh.com
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