“In my feeling, a lot of family legacy is unconscious,” explains Carol. “My whole family comes from the Black Forest in Germany. My ancestors were wood workers. And I married a woodworker.”

For Carol, family legacy has been a defining hallmark of her adult life – a legacy that includes hundreds of brilliant works of art by her and her late husband, Roy. She has relied on Meals on Wheels for 16 years (and counting) to stay in her home, create art, and take care of Roy.

Roy was not just an ordinary woodworker. Kenneth Baker, the San Francisco Chronicle’s art critic, described him in an obituary as “a prodigious master of the woodcut medium.” Among his achievements, he was recognized three times with the James D. Phelan award, and his work was displayed at the Legion of Honor. Roy died in 2014 after a long illness.

Carol is 76 years old. She has lived in the Inner Richmond since 1970 in a home that was built in 1920, when there were “nothing but sand dunes out here.” Carol’s extreme knee pain is a major limitation to her mobility. As the widow of an Army veteran, Meals on Wheels helped her benefit from a Home Depot Foundation’s Helping Homebound Heroes grant program. This program helps veterans and their spouses continue to live safely in their own homes. Through this program, the Home Depot Foundation provided the funds to paint Carol’s bathroom, replace her kitchen sink, and clean out old heating ducts and vents.

Walking in to Carol’s flat is like stumbling upon an undiscovered floor of the SF MOMA. It is adorned with beautiful paintings, sculptures, and drawings that cover nearly every inch of wall space – a fitting tribute to 40 years of marriage between two incredibly talented artists.

Carol has a long list of accomplishments as an illustrator. Her work has been featured in countless publications, from surfing magazines to ads for the Bon Marche department store. Early mentors picked up on her bold artistic ability, recognizing a unique style in her open and free-form sketches.

For Carol, drawing has been a salve to the challenges she’s faced in life, as an artist and a caretaker for her husband. She is grateful for assistance provided by Meals on Wheels. This gratitude is on full display in her countless works of art; beautiful, open, free form, and always outside the lines.

Photos of Carol by Maren Caruso