Mary Esther Carlin

Our beloved Dr. Mary Esther Carlin was born on February 17, 1945 in Pittsburg, Pennsylvania to Edward and Esther Carlin. She knew from the age of ten that she wanted to be a physician just as much as she wanted to be a mother. It was her brother, Edward Carlin, an emergency room physician, who inspired her to be a doctor. In addition, her sister, Helen Doyle, was a nurse. Mary Esther attended Barry College and then medical school at the University of Miami. She became a Genetic and Developmental Pediatrician after graduating med school in 1970, possibly not knowing, at that time, that her compassionate care would reach thousands of children all over the world for close to 50 years to come. Mary Esther had known Edmund Greber as a child but then met him again as an adult on February 8th of 1970. Edmund and Mary Esther shared a deep faith in Catholicism and a strong love for culture, classical music, opera, history and traveling the world. They were married in 1973 and had four children: Tara Carolan in 1976, Heather Angelika in 1979 and fraternal twins Joram Edmund Alois and Camber Noel Anton in 1982. The Grebers lived in Miami until 1992 when Dr. Mary Esther Carlin changed jobs and the family moved to Arlington, Texas. Over the years, Mary Esther welcomed three grandchildren into the world in 2006 (Keira Sofia), 2009 (Brielle Sadie) and 2013 (Mila Shaylee). She adored her blood line family and her extended family with adopted grandchildren, Omar and Amira, and always did everything she could to spend time with them. She was instrumental in bringing them together for family reunions in some of her favorite places, like the mountains. Mary Esther raised her four children with unconditional and endless love. She also spent countless hours caring for and helping families navigate the difficulties and stresses of caring for a loved one with genetic and developmental disorders. She touched many lives through practicing medicine and was so loved by the families and patients that she saw and helped for decades and decades. Not only was she an expert in the field of genetics, particularly Down Syndrome, but she also carved the way for other strong intelligent women like her to leave their mark in what was once a new and emerging field of medicine. Undoubtedly, one of her greatest qualities was her giving nature and with her passing, she was able to share the “ultimate” gift of life. Mary Esther was an organ donor and we are proud to say that she was able to donate her liver to someone else so that her legacy of giving would be able to live on through another person. As her family, we are very proud of this final accomplishment of hers, as it is so very symbolic of who she was and how she dedicated her life to helping others live better. Wade Family Funeral Home (817) 274-9233