Jeptha J. Carrell Papers

Jeptha J. Carrell (1923-2007) was a resident of Oberlin, Ohio, from 1979 through his death. He was born in Texas and raised in Philadelphia. After attending Swarthmore College and graduating from Franklin and Marshall College, Carrell was commissioned by the Marine Corps in 1944. During World War II, he served in such active sites as Pavuvu, Russell Islands, near Guadalcanal, in Okinawa in April 1945, and in China in 1945 and 1946.

After the war, Carrell's first job was as assistant dean of men and junior varsity baseball and freshman soccer coach at Swarthmore College. He simultaneously attended graduate school at the University of Pennsylvania, from which he earned an M.A. and a Ph.D. (1953) in public administration. He was recalled by the Marine Corps during the Korean War to work as an officer drill instructor at Parris Island, South Carolina, before being transferred to Kodiak, Alaska, where he completed his dissertation. He retired with the rank of captain.

His first job in municipal service was in Montgomery County, Maryland. He began as administrative assistant to the director of public works, and then became clerk to the county council and administrative assistant to the county manager. In his third year, Carrell was the acting county manager until he was appointed city manager of Xenia, Ohio. Subsequently, Carrell worked as director of training at the headquarters of the International City Managers' Association; in Kansas City for several years as a research associate with an academic and action research firm; in Dayton as director of Community Research, Inc., and as president of the Dayton-Miami Valley Consortium of Colleges and Universities. With the experience he gained in government and other leadership positions, Carrell published several books and articles on city management and government.

It was his career in city government and in non-profit work that attracted Eric and Evan Nord to name Carrell as the first full-time director of the Nordson Foundation (now The Nord Family Foundation) in Lorain County, Ohio. He held this last position from 1979 until retirement in 1989. For the period of 1981 through 1986 he had additional duties as director of The Community Foundation of Greater Lorain County.

Carrell was proud of several initiatives—including the creation of The Community Foundation, The County Cupboard, the Oberlin Co-op Cable Television Company, and Leadership Lorain County—he began under the auspices of the Nordson Foundation. Through his work at the Community Foundation, he established an African-American Fund and Hispanic Fund. The County Cupboard (now Second Harvest) distributes food to the unemployed of Lorain County, and the Oberlin Co-op Cable Television Company is the only non-profit co-operative cable system in the United States. Leadership Lorain County trains approximately 30 people a year to become more effective community leaders. He was also involved in developing and supporting several educational programs, including the Access Program (Lorain County Access to Higher Education). Carrell was also a board member of the Urban League, Shansi Foundation, and the Oberlin Heritage Center.

In November of 1989, The Cleveland Foundation and its supporting organization, The McDonald Fund, recruited Carrell to serve as a consultant to study the Cleveland Small Business Incubator. The incubator's effectiveness at encouraging small business development particularly in the minority community of Collinwood was, at that time, under question. Carrell's study sought to propose options for the CSBI's future. Carrell completed his final report to The Cleveland Foundation in January 1990.

His special talent as an unassuming administrator-leader led Carrell to remain active throughout his retirement. He was an active member of the Society of Friends, and as president of the Kendal at Oberlin Community Board (later known as Kendal at Oberlin), he contributed to planning the Society of Friends' continuing care retirement center from its inception in 1987 through 1991, and continued as a board member until January 1996. He was also a member of the Oberlin Community Improvement Corporation (O.C.I.C.), a not-for-profit agency for the city's industrial, commercial, distribution, and research development established in 1977. Carrell joined the board of trustees of the Oberlin Historical and Improvement Organization in 1990. Finally, he was a leading organizer for the development of a community swimming pool in Oberlin.

Carrell married Jean Demaris "Demmie" Affleck (b. 1926) in 1949; the couple had three children. In 1987, the Oberlin News-Tribune named Carrell "Oberlinian of the Year." He was also named to the League of Mentors of the Community Foundation of Lorain County, where the foundation established a fund in his name.

Carrell died on December 22, 2007 at Kendal at Oberlin. Survivors included his wife Jean Demaris “Demmie” Carrell, children Heather, Kim and Mark, as well as seven grandchildren.

Sources Consulted

Biographical File in Jeptha Carrell Papers contains:

“King Ore: Service in the United States Marine Corps in World War II,” by Jeptha Carrell, 30 July 1994.

Three photographs (one sheet), military service, undated.

“Obituaries: Jeptha J. Carrell.” Oberlin News-Tribune 8 January 2008, p. 2.

“Obituaries: Jeptha Carrell,” The Plain Dealer, 25 January 2008, p. B7.