Carrie King
Born: September 30, 1957, Coral Gables, FL, USA
Name at Birth: Marie-Caroline Benoit
Occupation: Elementary Grades Teacher
🕒 Timeline
In her family, they call her by her name, Marie-Caroline. But in most English-speaking environments, she uses the nickname “Carrie,” and she often thinks of herself using that variant of her name.
Carrie is a very first-generation Haitian-American, as in, her mother was pregnant with her when her parents escaped the political unrest following Paul Magloire’s presidency. (Her mother learned of the pregnancy at at her first medical exam in the United States.) They initially landed in Florida, but were ultimately resettled in Hyattsville, Maryland. Carrie’s siblings (four younger sisters, three younger brothers) were all born in Maryland, and she does not remember living in Florida.
Carrie’s parents were decently educated — they had been academics in Haiti — and spoke both French and Kreyòl, as well as a smattering of English and Spanish, when they immigrated. Because of that they were well-positioned to open a Haitian restaurant (and eventually, also a market) and the kids grew up helping to run that. They grew up fully bilingual in Kreyòl and English, along with a decent command of French (particularly liturgical French, as the family is Catholic). Carrie took French in high school to learn how to read and write in it, becoming fluent in the process. In college she switched to Spanish and is conversant but not fluent.
Carrie herself was often tapped to help care for her siblings, and she encountered violence at a young age growing up in the 1960s in D.C. There may also have been some domestic violence. By the time she was in high school, Carrie knew she did not want any children of her own — she felt she’d already raised hers, by raising her brothers and sisters. In college, she initially meant to be a nurse, but found her calling in teaching instead, with a particular interest in language acquisition.
Carrie received a B.S.Ed. in Elementary Education (with an emphasis in EFL) from the University of Maryland College Park in 1980 and enlisted in the Peace Corps during her senior year of college. She received her call-up notice in April 1981, to a two-year assignment in Sierra Leone, which she ultimately extended two more years to 1985. Carrie returned home and began teaching in the Arlington, Virginia, school system after that, but between her heritage as a first-generation American and her time spent overseas, she didn’t always feel completely comfortable in the culture.
During her time in Sierra Leone, Carrie also became conversant in Temne. She can (mostly) understand Krio but can’t speak more than a few basic sentences.
In June 1986, she met Joe King at a Peace Corps alumni mixer where he spoke about Estoccia. They hit it off and began dating not long afterward, becoming engaged about six months later. They were married in June 1987, exactly a year to the day after they met. She met Lee Stetson not too long after the marriage, and they ended up becoming friends.
Carrie King was named but not shown in the canonical television series. Her photo was generated by ChatGPT.
Timeline
| September 30, 1957 | Born, Coral Gables, FL, USA |
| May 10, 1980 | B.S.Ed., Elementary Education, University of Maryland |
| August 1, 1981 | Dispatched to Sierra Leone by the Peace Corps |
| May 18, 1985 | Returns to United States after Peace Corps duty |
| June 20, 1986 | Meets Joe King at a Peace Corps alumni mixer |
| June 20, 1987 | Marries Joe King, Hyattsville, MD, USA |
| July 6, 1988 | Leaves, via London, for an assignment with the International Rescue Committee in Algeria |
