Carolyn Anne White-Travanti

Loving. Artistic. Soft and bright.

Beloved wife of 36  years of Leon Travanti; mother of sons Scott (Arlene) and Patrick (Cherie) with former husband Ted White; grandmother of Genevieve and great grandmother of Nilo.

Carolyn held an MFA (Master of Fine Arts) and enjoyed a long and successful career as an art instructor, school principal and art supervisor with the Milwaukee Public Schools (MPS). She was instrumental in the Milwaukee Art Museum’s “Satellite” art program for high schoolers with MPS, which achieved recognition from the Getty Foundation. Carolyn taught drawing, painting, sculpture, installation, performance, art history and museum and career education.

Yes, Carolyn was a vibrant working artist. She exhibited her work widely. Her installations and art were featured in national and regional competitive exhibitions.

A quiet but astute and trusted leader on the arts scene, Carolyn and the late Jane Brite worked to form the “Artists Working with Homeless Women” project. Carolyn was a founding member of “Artists Working in Education.”

Leon and Carolyn were true soulmates. They spent many joyful years pursuing a shared passion: Travel. Their adventures included visits to India, Africa, China, Thailand, Cambodia and Europe.

Carolyn loved her spacious Victorian mansion on the East Side. It was the scene of another passion: Her big annual Christmas party. Dear friends and family gathered there to view the towering tree and feast on a sumptuous buffet. A dear friend, Dean Johnson, appeared as a violin-playing Santa Claus every year beginning in 1983.

Besides her husband and family, Carolyn is survived by a large and loving circle of friends.

Carolyn was cherished. Beloved.  

Carolyn had a simple saying. She said it a lot. It was three words (and it wasn’t “Leon, come here”). It was:

“I love you.”

We are left with that love. It burns bright in Leon and her family and her many dear friends.

A memorial gathering will be held Sunday, October 31, 2021, from 3 to 5 p.m. at North Shore Funerals, 3601 N. Oakland Ave., Shorewood, with a program at 3:30 p.m. Memorials to the Milwaukee Art Museum (mam.org) or Villa Terrace Decorative Arts Museum (villaterrace.org) are suggested.

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