Carrie Newman

DECORAH --- Carrie Duncan Newman, 50, Decorah, and previously of Sioux City died at home unexpectedly on February 14th, 2025. Per her wishes, her body has been cremated.

Her family is planning a Celebration of Life ceremony, also per her wishes. It will be held at a future date in Sioux City.

Carrie is survived by her husband, Mark Newman of Decorah; mother, Virginia "Ginny" Duncan of Sioux City and sisters Mindy (Tony) Winchester and Molly Duncan. Carrie loved family, and was especially fond of her nieces and nephews. She had stories about her childhood visits with each relative. And while she loved all her friends, she listed a number of special people in her life: Shannon, Leslye, Crystal, Christen,  Robin, Anne and Tadhg; Eric, Doug, Michael and Richard; and Tom and Pat as well as Carla and Angelo. Carrie was preceded in death by her father, Michael T. Duncan.

She attended Wayne State College, where she earned her master's degree in agency counseling. Experiences with her own physical disabilities led her to help others with disabilities: She spent several years working for the State of Nebraska and later, the State of Iowa as a vocational rehabilitation counselor. Carrie grew up as a member of the Unitarian Church in Sioux City and later joined the UU Fellowship in Decorah. She held UU principles close to her heart.

She especially supported the call to value the life and dignity of every human being; and to do more than tolerate our fellow human but to truly accept one another. Perhaps that's why politics, justice and other news topics interested her so much: The news she gathered from multiple sources told her about how people were being treated. Her guilty pleasure was entertainment and celebrity news, though that fit in with her appreciation of film and music.

Carrie also enjoyed going out to eat or trying a dish whipped up by her husband. Combining that with her enjoyment of keeping in touch via social media, it was common for her to post photos of her most recent culinary adventure.

Carrie was also not shy about reminding her community to do away with stigma and talk about mental illness openly, exactly like any other illness. Finally, when her life ended, family helped with Carrie's compassionate wish: being an organ donor.