Carlotta D. Roberts

Carlotta Roberts Well done, good and faithful servant. 

1943-2026

 Carlotta and Gary were married 53 years ago at Fort McPherson, Atlanta, Georgia. She has one son, Benjamin, one grandson, Nathaniel, and one daughter-in-law, Laura, all of whom she loves very much. 

A native of Chicago, Carlotta graduated from Rosary College and one of her first jobs (1966-68) was with the United States Army as a civilian (GS-7), where she served for a year in Korea and another year in Vietnam managing service clubs for the GI’s. She worked with Martha Rae and General Westmoreland, and is considered a Vietnam Veteran by the Women’s Veterans Association. She survived a number of close calls by hostile enemy forces (including direct fire and mortar shells). 

After Vietnam she taught school in Boston where she and Gary met in 1970. Moving to Atlanta, she developed a reputation as a capable apartment complex manager and earned a law degree (JD). In Knoxville she was the Assistant Director of the Urban League, where she litigated Tennessee’s first successful Equal Housing Law case by circumventing a local federal bias against the law. 

In the late 1980’s she became the director of Kennesaw State University’s Small Business Development Center where she personally helped hundreds of small businesses grow. In the early 2000’s she was one of the co-founders of the Cobb Microenterprise Center—working with small, disadvantaged business startups. 

A founding member of Saint Teresa’s Episcopal Church in West Cobb County, she served as Senior Warden at 2 Episcopal Churches, and Junior Warden at one other. Her leadership style was bringing folks together and reconciliation. 

She loved being a mother and grandmother—which she considered her best contribution and the most fun.