Former Biloxi councilman dies at 59

Former Biloxi Councilman Bob Carroll's interest in Republican politics and all things Biloxi never waned.

Carroll passed away at his home Saturday at age 59.

"I certainly will miss him," said his friend Keith Burton, who met Carroll when they both attended Biloxi High School. "I talked to him about every other day, sometimes several times a day.

"Bob was somebody who loved Biloxi ever since I've known him. He always stayed active as far as trying to be a player in the decisions that would affect Biloxi. He was always active and he had a very large contingent of contacts."

When Carroll felt strongly about an issue, Burton said, he would call the appropriate office, whether it was his congressional office or the governor's staff, to express his opinion.

Carroll was most recently pushing to restore Amtrak train service with a station in Biloxi.

"When Bob thought there was a project that needed doing, it didn't matter who was in the way, he would collect the facts and keep on until he accomplished what he was trying to do," said another friend, Dianne Harenski, who served with Carroll on the Biloxi City Council.

Carroll worked as a stockbroker when he ran for the Biloxi City Council. He served on the council from 1985-1989, then lost his bid for re-election. He tried another run for the council in 2013, but was defeated in the Republican primary.

Harenski said Carroll still studied the council agendas to follow local issues. He also read a great deal of political material online, Burton said.

Carroll always had a strong sense of right and wrong.

"It didn't matter if he was your friend or not," Harenski said. "If he thought you were wrong, he wasn't going to be for you."

When they were on the council together, Harenski relied on Carroll's knowledge of zoning.

"That was his forte'," Harenski said. "He knew zoning up one side and down the other ... Most of the time, I would just defer to him on zoning."

After his time on the council, Carroll held numerous jobs. He served as executive director of the Biloxi Housing Authority and later worked for the city of Gulfport. Most recently, he had been a deputy court clerk for Harrison County Justice Court.

Harenski said Carroll had high blood pressure, but seemed OK when she talked to him Saturday. Donald Trump was going to host "Saturday Night Live" that evening.

"We talked politics, naturally," Harenski said. "I asked him if he was going to watch Saturday Night Live. He had said he wanted to watch it because he kind of liked Trump and 'Saturday Night Live' was one of his favorite programs."

This story was originally published November 10, 2015 at 6:23 PM with the headline "Former Biloxi councilman dies at 59."