Carlo was born on December 5, 1920 in Nulato, Territory of Alaska. She married William "Bill" Carlo in 1940. They have eight children, five sons (William, Jr., Kenny, Walter, Glenn, and Stewart) and three daughters (Dorothy, Lucy, and Kathleen). She lives in Fairbanks, Alaska. A building in downtown Fairbanks, owned by the FNA, was named the Poldine Carlo Building in her honor. She died on May 9, 2018 in Fairbanks, Alaska at the age of 97.