Kelly Kenyatta Carter was born on December 24, 1971, in Chicago, Illinois, to Elizabeth Anne Carter Nelson and the late Austin Howard Carter, Jr. She was the youngest of five children.
Kelly accepted Christ at an early age. As a young girl, she would get ready for church, walk to Lilydale Baptist Church in Chicago, and sing in the Sunshine Choir. Kelly accepted the call to minister the Word of the Lord while attending college. Kelly was ordained an Elder at Miracle Temple Ministries, Inc. She moved her membership to Dwelling Place International Church. She was devoted to the Lord and had such a zeal to see the unsaved brought into the Kingdom of Christ. She never met a stranger and took every opportunity to share the love of Jesus with them. Kelly believed in the power of prayer and shared that message through word and demonstration. She was an excellent teacher of the Word of God. She had an amazing teaching skills with a simplicity that everyone could understand and make applicable. Kelly’s legacy was using her gifts and talents to plant many seeds that would bear fruit in different seasons of her life. Whether it was teaching in the school system, helping students, working with and ministering to co-workers, or laboring in the Body of Christ, Kelly Carter was a woman that God could use, and ripple the effects of her presence on this earth will be felt for generations to come.
Kelly was a graduate of John Marshall Harlan High School class of 1990. Her classmates elected her senior class president. She was always a serious student and served on the student council and was elected citywide to serve on the Chicago Board of Education as a Board of Supervisors her senior year in high school.
Upon high school graduation, Kelly attended Alabama A & M University in Huntsville, Alabama, majoring in Elementary/Early Childhood Education. In 1995, she graduated cum laude with a B.S. Degree. She graduated from De Paul University with a M. Ed in Administration and Supervision in 2003 and an ED.S. in Curriculum Instruction and Professional Development from Walden University in 2012.
Kelly taught in the Chicago School System for close to ten years and moved to Memphis, TN to be close to her immediate family. She joined Memphis City Schools as a second-grade teacher at Cherokee Elementary and Evans Elementary Schools. Kelly was an instructional facilitator at Treadwell Middle School and an assistant principal at Treadwell Elementary School. She joined Gestalt Community Schools and served as a dean at Power Center Academy Middle School and a principal at Humes Preparatory Middle School. After leaving Gestalt, Kelly worked as an instructional facilitator and principal for Southern Avenue Charter Schools. She also served as a dean and principal at City University School. In 2021, Kelly joined Memphis and Shelby County Schools as an instructional support advisor and recently accepted a position as a highly specialized advisor in the Professional Learning and Support Department. Kelly was a true educator. She loved teaching and sharing her knowledge with other leaders in the field of education. She has numerous professional certifications.
In 1995, Kelly pledged to Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. and was initiated into the Gamma Mu Chapter at Alabama A & M University. She was a member of the NAACP Memphis Branch, Sigma Tau Epsilon Professional Fraternity, and the National Women’s Political Caucus.
Kelly transitioned into the arms of her loving Savior on Friday, September 29, 2023. She will be missed by so many who loved her; we find comfort that she is in heaven.
She was preceded in death by her father, Austin H. Carter, Jr. She leaves behind a devoted mother, Elizabeth Carter Nelson; sisters, Deidre Carter Malone (Patrick) and Juandali Dawn Carter; and a bonus sister, Rosalyn Ammons. Her brothers are Austin Howard Carter III (Alicia), John Wesley Foster Carter (Christian), and bonus brother Robert Garrett Jr. Nieces Stephanie Carter, Ashley Carter, Arlycia Thomas (Nickolus), Amanda Carter, Jamila Webb, and Alizabeth Carter. Her nephews are Patrick Malone II, Brian Malone (Brittany), Austin Carter Jr., Stephen Carter, John Jr., Joshua, and Al’Trell Johnson. Kelly remained friends with her ex-husband, Andre Pharr. She leaves a host of cousins and friends whose lives she touched dearly.
To share a memory or send a condolence gift, please visit the Official Obituary of Elder Kelly Kenyatta Carter- Pharr hosted by Harrison's Memorial Chapel.
Kelly Kenyatta Carter was born on December 24, 1971, in Chicago, Illinois, to Elizabeth Anne Carter Nelson and the late Austin Howard Carter, Jr. She was the youngest of five children.
Kelly accepted Christ at an early age. As a young girl, she would get ready for church, walk to Lilydale Baptist Church in Chicago, and sing in the Sunshine Choir. Kelly accepted the call to minister the Word of the Lord while attending college. Kelly was ordained an Elder at Miracle Temple Ministries, Inc. She moved her membership to Dwelling Place International Church. She was devoted to the Lord and had such a zeal to see the unsaved brought into the Kingdom of Christ. She never met a stranger and took every opportunity to share the love of Jesus with them. Kelly believed in the power of prayer and shared that message through word and demonstration. She was an excellent teacher of the Word of God. She had an amazing teaching skills with a simplicity that everyone could understand and make applicable. Kelly’s legacy was using her gifts and talents to plant many seeds that would bear fruit in different seasons of her life. Whether it was teaching in the school system, helping students, working with and ministering to co-workers, or laboring in the Body of Christ, Kelly Carter was a woman that God could use, and ripple the effects of her presence on this earth will be felt for generations to come.
Kelly was a graduate of John Marshall Harlan High School class of 1990. Her classmates elected her senior class president. She was always a serious student and served on the student council and was elected citywide to serve on the Chicago Board of Education as a Board of Supervisors her senior year in high school.
Upon high school graduation, Kelly attended Alabama A & M University in Huntsville, Alabama, majoring in Elementary/Early Childhood Education. In 1995, she graduated cum laude with a B.S. Degree. She graduated from De Paul University with a M. Ed in Administration and Supervision in 2003 and an ED.S. in Curriculum Instruction and Professional Development from Walden University in 2012.
Kelly taught in the Chicago School System for close to ten years and moved to Memphis, TN to be close to her immediate family. She joined Memphis City Schools as a second-grade teacher at Cherokee Elementary and Evans Elementary Schools. Kelly was an instructional facilitator at Treadwell Middle School and an assistant principal at Treadwell Elementary School. She joined Gestalt Community Schools and served as a dean at Power Center Academy Middle School and a principal at Humes Preparatory Middle School. After leaving Gestalt, Kelly worked as an instructional facilitator and principal for Southern Avenue Charter Schools. She also served as a dean and principal at City University School. In 2021, Kelly joined Memphis and Shelby County Schools as an instructional support advisor and recently accepted a position as a highly specialized advisor in the Professional Learning and Support Department. Kelly was a true educator. She loved teaching and sharing her knowledge with other leaders in the field of education. She has numerous professional certifications.
In 1995, Kelly pledged to Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. and was initiated into the Gamma Mu Chapter at Alabama A & M University. She was a member of the NAACP Memphis Branch, Sigma Tau Epsilon Professional Fraternity, and the National Women’s Political Caucus.
Kelly transitioned into the arms of her loving Savior on Friday, September 29, 2023. She will be missed by so many who loved her; we find comfort that she is in heaven.
She was preceded in death by her father, Austin H. Carter, Jr. She leaves behind a devoted mother, Elizabeth Carter Nelson; sisters, Deidre Carter Malone (Patrick) and Juandali Dawn Carter; and a bonus sister, Rosalyn Ammons. Her brothers are Austin Howard Carter III (Alicia), John Wesley Foster Carter (Christian), and bonus brother Robert Garrett Jr. Nieces Stephanie Carter, Ashley Carter, Arlycia Thomas (Nickolus), Amanda Carter, Jamila Webb, and Alizabeth Carter. Her nephews are Patrick Malone II, Brian Malone (Brittany), Austin Carter Jr., Stephen Carter, John Jr., Joshua, and Al’Trell Johnson. Kelly remained friends with her ex-husband, Andre Pharr. She leaves a host of cousins and friends whose lives she touched dearly.
To share a memory or send a condolence gift, please visit the Official Obituary of Elder Kelly Kenyatta Carter- Pharr hosted by Harrison's Memorial Chapel.
