Carol Ann Hansen, 92, of West Columbia, S.C., passed away Tuesday, April 7, 2026 at home after cardiac-related health issues. She was born during the Great Depression on Nov. 9, 1933 in New Bedford, Mass., the daughter of Bradford Terry Sr. and Doris Terry nee Caswell.
The family moved across the Acushnet River to Fairhaven where Carol completed her primary and secondary education, graduating from Fairhaven High School, the Castle on the Hill, in 1951. With aspirations of a career in the retail clothing business, Carol attended college at the Chamberlain School of Retailing in Boston. After graduation, Carol worked as a fashion buyer at R.H. Whites Department Store where she met her first husband, Arnold Zellman.
After marrying Arnold, the couple relocated with each new career promotion to Springfield, Ohio, where their three daughters – Bonnie, Kim, and Deborah – were born, followed by a move to Waterloo, Iowa, then Westfield, N.J., and finally Greenville, S.C.
In Greenville, Carol began a long career as owner of Indigo Titles, working with the various real estate attorneys. With a keen eye for detail, Carol enjoyed combing the plat books at the Registry of Deeds.
As with anything in life, there is a season and Carol remarried, to an old friend, Norman Hansen, who she became reacquainted with at a high school reunion. She moved to Indianapolis where life in the Midwest was complete by her weekly bridge games with “The Girls.”
Carol’s love for card games was ever apparent when she visited her eldest daughter Bonnie and her young grandsons, Sam and Ben, in Maine. She was always up for a game with the grandkids and seemed to time her visits to correspond with the weekly bridge game at The Lincoln Home. Carol was a competitive bridge player who also enjoyed a friendly game of poker and billiards.
An ever-enduring passion has always been Carol’s love of the arts, especially music. She most enjoyed classical/chamber and the lively beat of jazz. Over the decades, Carol was a member of various choirs at her synagogue, the Lexington Choral Society, and the Sweet Adeline choral group in Indianapolis, which traveled to New York for competitions.
Her home was always filled with music. She could be seen jitterbugging across the kitchen floor or waltzing along in her garden. Music spoke to her, and what goes along best with music? Why it was dance! While her children were studying their times tables, Carol was learning tap-dancing and practicing on the kitchen linoleum floor!
In summers starting in 2000, Carol traveled up to Newcastle to escape the heat of South Carolina. She was a frequent attendee on a Sunday afternoon at Schooner Landing, listening to a local band and cutting a rug! Carol had a joie de vive, a joy for living, a talent for always being present and for savoring every special moment.
After becoming a widow, Carol moved to Columbia, S.C. near her daughter Kim, where she sang with a folk band, performing at various local nursing homes and bringing joy to the residents with music therapy. She cherished her season subscription to the USC Philharmonic and attended Broadway-in-Columbia musical performances. She became an active member of the Tree of Life Congregation and enjoyed singing in the choir.
Living in Columbia, S.C. gave her an opportunity to share in her daughter Kim’s family events: her granddaughter Shayna’s dance recitals, soccer, and rugby games and her grandson Daniel’s soccer and wrestling matches.
Being present in her family’s life and those of her grandchildren was paramount to Carol. She attended every graduation from eighth grade, high school, and college. She also went to band concerts, soccer games, wrestling matches, and hockey games – any opportunity to share in her grandchildren’s joy and passions. Milestone events were numerous, namely her grandsons’ bar mitzvahs and granddaughter’s bat mitzvah along with grandson Daniel’s wedding.
International travel became a mainstay in Carol’s life with an annual trip to another corner of the globe: a Danube River cruise, Alaska Glacial Bay cruise, trips to Spain and Morocco, the Bahamas and Italy with daughter Deborah, Scotland and England and the Azores plus the canyons of Utah and Arizona with her dear friend, Clement Greene.
Carol was passionate about her rich Terry family heritage. As a descendant of the Whaling Masters, her antecedent, Phineas Terry, was the captain of the whaling ship The Ahab. She was actively involved with and a faithful supporter of the New Bedford Whaling Museum. Her family arrived on these shores as whalers from York, England searching for religious freedom, served as minutemen in the Revolutionary War. In England, the Terrys were also chocolatiers, and are still making the famous Terry’s chocolates today.
When asked what her secret to longevity might be, Carol would always respond, “Keep moving!” She believed in the importance of exercising your brain and your body by doing something that you enjoy, always remember to have fun and to laugh often, and to forgive yourself when you make a mistake. Great advice from a great lady!
Carol is survived by her children, Bonnie Zellman Stone (Gary Stone), of Newcastle, Kim Zellman Bannister (David Bannister), of Lexington, S.C., and Deborah Zellman Ferris (Chad Ferris), of Mt. Pleasant, S.C.; grandchildren, Samuel Stone, of Fairbanks, Alaska, Shayna Bannister, of Crested Butte, Colo., Benjamin K. Stone, MD, of Chicago, Ill., and Daniel Bannister (Elena), of Annapolis, Md., and Hannah Ferris, of Simpsonville, S.C.; great-granddaughter, Blake E. Bannister, of Annapolis, Md.; nephew, Peter Shaw and niece, Cordelia Shaw-Savala, both of Atlanta, Ga.; and first cousin, Margie Terry, of Connecticut.
She is predeceased by her parents; brother, Bradford Terry Jr.; and sister, Constance Shaw.
Graveside service was held at 11 a.m. on Friday, April 10 at Riverside Cemetery in Fairhaven, Mass., officiated by Rabbi Sarah Mack, of Temple Beth-El in Providence, R.I., then followed by a memorial service in Columbia, S.C. on Sunday, April 12 at 4 p.m. at Tree of Life Congregation with Rabbi Erik Uriarte officiating.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorials be made to the charity of their choice.
