Karen was born July 18th, 1962 in Rupert, Idaho to Richard and LaVon Finlinson. She was the sixth child born in our family and the second girl. My mother had felt so close to her own sister that she kept trying to have another girl, so I could have that sister relationship. First was Bruce and I, then Mark, then Allen and Gary were born before Karen came to the family.
At the time, my parents had homesteaded a farm in Idaho, having moved an 800 square foot Army barrack to Idaho from Oak City, Utah to call home. The anticipation of a new baby, with 6 other people already living in the house, kicked off the building of an 800 square foot addition.
Being born on Primary day, Dad had called the church to let us know that we had a baby sister. Of course the ward was elated and gave my mother her first baby shower...giving Karen a wardrobe far superior than any of us other kids, I’m sure kicking off a love of clothes shopping for Karen.
In the summer of 1965, we made our way to Mesa, Arizona. Karen was 3 years old and we lived on East Downing, currently in Elmwood Ward.
Karen was always a ray of sunshine. As a very small child she would dance around laughing with a sparkle in her eye and a sense of humor to boot. She was completely delightful. She would not only dance on her toes, but walk on her toes. She loved being a part of things and right in the middle of the action. She was always moving, always busy doing something and very social.
It was easy for Karen to make friends as she was so fun loving and accepting of people. As a young girl she seemed to include everyone around her in playing and participating in her brand of fun.
Karen was 8 years younger than me and for many summers, I would sew Karen a variety of school clothes. It was important to me to make sure she dressed cute and had fun clothes. Later in her high school and college years, Karen loved to pour over fashion magazines and has always had a unique and great sense of style. Diabetic at 12
The summer of 1973 when my boyfriend at the time...now husband, Tom came to Arizona to meet the family, Karen and David were so excited for Tom to come. They stood down on the corner by the stop sign on Brown Rd and 24th Street, and waited to spot his yellow Super Beetle. When Tom showed up, Karen would plop herself down on his lap at every opportunity, throw her arm around his shoulder and talked away.
Karen was very active in school and extracurricular activities. She was 9th grade president. She had a close group of friends all through her junior high and high school years. They were highly spirited and just had a lot of fun together. I asked Lyric Hatch to relate some of her memories of those times. She said that Karen loved student council and school dances. She had a really cool dance step, which Lyric added...was amazing for the 70’s. We would watch her and try to copy her steps. We ended up calling the step, right step, left kick, one foot forward as your arms hang at your sides and her shoulders sway, ‘The Finlinson Move.” She was so funny.
During her 9th grade year, Lyric also recalled that Karen liked a boy, but when he tried to hold her hand she broke up with him.
Karen went to BYU living at Desert Towers,
Karen has had many real struggles throughout her life because of her health problems that have beset her. Her attitude during her health struggles are exemplified by this story from a friend. She would come and visit Karen on a regular basis at a very low time of Karen’s life. She was not able to see at this time. She would throw Karen’s wheelchair in the back of her Datsun convertible and take her for rides. She took Karen shopping on this particular occasion. As she pushed Karen through the stores, looking for a pair of new jeans, she would reach out and feel the material on each pair and picked several to try on. She would ask with each pair, are these cute, are they cuter than the last pair? She was truly amazing with her great attitude during her illnesses.
1989 – Gary and Karen met mom, dad and David in Europe. Eric and Karen met in the singles’ ward while Eric was in pilot training at Williams Air Force Base. She had been having health challenges and was on kidney dialysis and had lost a good share of her sight. After graduating from pilot training, Eric was stationed in Little Rock, AR and they carried on a long distance courtship. Mom and Dad would report that when Karen and Eric were on the phone, you could hear Karen’s laughter all over the house. But thanks to modern medicine, Karen was able to have an operation that returned her sight. Eric and Karen were married in the Mesa Temple on June 9, 1990 and planned their honeymoon destinations to be around a dialysis center every 3rd day. Karen joined Eric in Little Rock Arkansas where he flew C-130’s from that air base. In November of that year, our youngest brother David donated to her a kidney. She had the transplant here in Phoenix and family came together to support her through that milestone in her life. David was able to give her 13 years of superior kidney function and the opportunity to have two wonderful boys.
The doctors had told Karen to not consider children for at least several years, if at all. But Blake was born in Oct of 1992 on his Dad’s birthday. He was born right at the same time of Eric’s mother’s passing and I was able to go to Little Rock and bring Karen and Blake home from the hospital. She dug right in to the responsibilities of motherhood. She was so blessed to not have the complications that doctors had predicted and we all felt that Karen had received another miracle.
Two years later, in June of 1994, Brigg arrived. Another miracle was received. A doctor’s had tied Karen’s tubes and 4 months later, Karen was expecting! The Lord blessings once again flowed and Karen was under the careful prenatal care of Chad Lunt, a military doctor married to Karen’s dear friend and our next door neighbor growing up, Diana Hatfield.
What a blessing Karen’s military friends were. She had such a great support system wherever they went, Little Rock, San Antonio and Dover, Delaware. They made lifetime friendships that they will forever cherish. Karen’s life away from home was filled with laughter and close friendships, keeping close to dear friends by phone. (Cassie and Randy Synder and Lisa and Kevin Coburn, Brent and Kelly Stephensen)
Karen had always loved home décor, but it was in San Antonio that she was influenced by her trips to Fredricksburg...a mecca of home design right in the hill country of Texas. Her love of Shabby Chic, white slip-covered furniture, white walls, white furniture and white everything was born. She had always loved to pour over home magazines, collect fabric samples and was often known for bringing home the whole bolt if she liked it!
How she loved paint samples! If she drove by a door that she liked, she would stop to find out what color it was and even would get a sample of the paint if she could. Thank goodness if a person was willing to share the brand and name of the paint color they had used, because there was no rest until she found out what it was.
After San Antonio, Eric and Karen moved to Dover where Eric started flying C-5’s with the Air Force. Karen’s life was filled with trips to the Amish Market, the auction where her and her friends would buy furniture and other salvage yard finds. She was always helping her friends with decorating and upholstering tips and thrived on making her home a shabby chic showplace.
Eric started moving towards a career as an airline pilot and staying in the reserves. This made a move west possible and Arizona was the chosen destination. Being close to family and a support system was definitely the criteria. In 2000 Eric and Karen and the boys moved back to Arizona. We all felt fortunate that they could be so close and we could see each other daily. Our weeks have gone from one Sunday dinner to the next, planning whose house it’s at and who is bringing what!
Karen always had her thoughts and daily concerns about her health struggles, but as we all know, she was cheerful and able to face her obstacles with optimism. She was very aware of her mortality and would sometimes make comments that would surprise those that didn’t know her well. Through the years she had critical times when we were left wondering if her time was near. But time after time she rebounded and the Lord blessed her. All close to her knew that she had at least one, if not many, guardian angels and we all know that Karen has had more than 9 lives!
Karen had signs that her kidney was failing and began researching and looking at transplant options. She definitely found her home in Salt Lake with Dr. LeGrand Belnap and his transplant center. They made it personal and Dr. Belnap took a special interest in her. Eric was able to give her another kidney and she was listed for a pancreas transplant, which she was able to receive months later. For a year her pancreas functioned but she began noticing signs of that coming to an end. She accepted each transition and change in her life with such faith and an attitude of moving forward. When she got word 8 weeks ago that she was up for another transplant, she did comment that she had been doing so well and felt a bit unsure going into this transplant. But as we all know, Karen was not going to turn down a good transplant, with a perfect match! She had done so well in the past and we all had faith that the Lord was definitely in charge of her life.
She and Eric flew to Salt Lake where she began her last journey. Again, with Dr Belnap and a team of doctors that we had complete confidence in, they made every move possible to pull Karen through her many obstacles. The nursing staff at LDS Hospital loved and cared for her. They were all drawn to her and would mention how stoic she was through her trials. One nurse’s aid in particular, also from an earlier transplant, Christine, even extended that love beyond Karen and is now married to Marks’ son, Tyler. We thank her for all the tender care and attention she has given Karen in each of her hospital stays.
Being a seasoned patient, Karen knows so much about her own health and well being and she lets her wishes be known. Every attempt was made to ease her burden and make her comfortable. With her boys calling her the Queen of Comfort, no one takes for granted her need for down pillows, high thread counts, cashmere sweaters to keep her warm in bed, egg crates, soft blankets and lots of hand and foot massages. Our family feels eternally blessed to have had the opportunity to be at her bedside, to ease her burdens, comfort her spirit and participate in the feeding of our souls at her bedside. Karen had many hands involved in taking care of her..special mention ...Bruce. Heavenly Father and his Son Jesus Christ are very aware of Karen. Their spirit has attended her and us. They have sent Heavenly messengers with priesthood authority to lay hands upon her head to comfort her and us. Karen did tell the doctors that she felt that this was her time and asked how she could go as gracefully as possible.
Blake and Brigg, as your mother told you, she will be your angel. You do have family here to love and take care of you and help you through your life journey, but your mother will be with you every day. To Eric, we will be eternally grateful to you for the love and tenderness you have given Karen. We pray for the Lord’s spirit to be with us all.
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