Karen Kay Smith (born Seely)
Personal
Gender: Female
Date of Birth: August 1, 1949
Date of Death: January 29, 2012
Birth Place: Emmetsburg, IA
Death Place: St, Louis, MO
Karen Kay Smith
Karen was born August 1, 1949, at Emmetsburg, Iowa, to Bert and Helen (Meyer) Seely, the first female born to the Seely family in four generations. Karen attended St. Paul’s Lutheran School in Whittemore then graduated from Algona High School in 1967. She attended Black Hawk Academy in Waterloo, graduating in 1969 as an LPN. She then moved to Vacaville, California, and worked in Sacramento. Karen was united in marriage on December 19, 1970, to Bruce Smith. With Bruce in the military, Karen worked at various cities as an LPN, spending 30 years at Harrison Memorial Hospital in Bremerton, Washington. She retired in 2006, and she and Bruce traveled until making their home in Algona in 2011. Karen enjoyed traveling, gardening, collecting dolls and keeping track of her grandchildren’s activities. They would text each other often. Her greatest enjoyment was quilting, belonging to a quilting club in Bremerton as well as being active with the Trinity Lutheran Church Quilting Ladies. Karen died on Sunday, January 29, 2012, at Barnes Jewish Hospital in St. Louis, Missouri at the age of 62. Survivors include her husband Bruce of Algona; her son Brian of Lacey, Washington, three grandchildren, Seth, Kelci, and Aspen and two brothers, Keith Seely and wife Kendra of Whittemore, Iowa and Kenneth (Pinky) and wife Shirley of Sioux City, Iowa. Karen was preceded in death by her parents, and daughter Natalie Chambers. Services were held at South Sound Manor, Tumwater, Washington, Wednesday, February 8, 2012 2:00 P.M.
Published in The Olympian, (WA) on Friday, February 10, 2012
