MARLIN, Texas – Remarkable women impact not only their community and those around them, but also generations to come.

FOX 44 News takes a closer look at Marlin Mayor Carolyn Lofton, who was nominated by her city manager as a Remarkable Woman.

Lofton says she can’t imagine living anywhere else.

“I want our community to be able to work together as a family, because we are a family. We celebrate together. We mourn together. We laugh together. So I want us to move forward together,” Lofton said.

She not only works a full-time job as a medical social worker, but also several part-time jobs as the city’s mayor, social work visits, and teaching a social work class for Baylor University.

“To whom much is given, much is required. So I make sure that I take care of the things that I need to, and the people that need my help,” Lofton said.

Not only does work keep her busy, but she’s a mom to two biological children – and also has custody of five nieces and nephews.

“Family has always been a focal point of my life,” Lofton said.

City Manager Cedric Davis nominated Lofton as a FOX 44 Remarkable Woman – calling her “phenomenal.”

Lofton reads Davis’s nomination: “She has led a dying community through a revitalization period, to include fiscal soundness. Lofton and her administrative team provided solid leadership during the Texas Winter Storm. She feeds the elderly, supports local children learning K-12, and serves as a very popular online professor for Baylor University.”

Lofton says she’s humbled by the nomination.

“That he [Davis] would take the time to nominate me for something of this magnitude,” Lofton said.

During the February 2021 winter storm, she demonstrated to her entire community just how remarkable she is.

“I had taken in 24 people into my home that didn’t have electricity, so the house was chaotic,” Lofton said.

People quickly lost resources, and she brought hope back during a scary situation.

“So that’s when I reached out to the mayor of Waco. We called several convenience stores and whoever was willing to sell us water so we could get it back here for our people. That’s what we did,” Lofton said.

She didn’t just help those in the past – she helps those who need it now, and motivates the future generations of Marlin.

“I always take two gifts, and we do a drawing from all of the children who were on the Honor Roll and perfect attendance for that six weeks, and then at the end of the year, we do a larger prize. The kids are motivated. They are excited, and they are excelling, because they are remaining on the Honor Roll and they are having perfect attendance,” Lofton said.

She says everything she does is because God has given her the strength to do it.

“I educate, I motivate, I encourage, I support. And because everything that I do helps me to be able to do that, that drives my passion. Because when I can help somebody pay it forward to someone, the blessings that God has bestowed on me, then that’s fulfilling for me,” Lofton said.