1953-2013
It is with profound sadness that we announce Karen’s passing at Victoria Hospice on November 30, 2013. Karen was the cherished only child of Rosina Balsdon who predeceased her in 2012. Born in Toronto, Karen chose to make her home in Victoria 14 years ago and created a beautiful west coast organic garden which gave her much joy. Karen faced the challenges of breast cancer for over a decade and lived her life fully with grace and dignity. She took great pleasure in her home, in preparing marvelous meals, traveling and reading. Karen was devoted to her cat Katrina who was a real comfort to her. A dedicated federal public servant for nearly four decades, Karen took great pride in her work and retired only a few months ago.
Karen will be lovingly remembered by her cherished family of friends in Victoria and Ontario. Karen was surrounded with the love of her CRA family, her book group friends and her golf ladies – she will be particularly missed by her longtime friends Jay and Fay in Ontario.
We would like to thank the staff of the Vancouver Island Cancer Centre, in particular, Dr Vanessa Bernstein, for their loving care over the years and the staff of Victoria Hospice for their compassion in Karen’s final hours.
A Funeral Service will be held on Monday, December 9, 2013 at 3pm at McCall’s Downtown Chapel at Vancouver & Johnson Street, Victoria BC. A reception will immediately follow the service. In lieu of flowers, donations in Karen’s memory to the BC SPCA (spca.bc.ca) would be appreciated.
Condolences may be offered to the family below.
McCall Bros. Funeral Home
www.mccallbros.com
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Jenny
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Lindsey Thinking of you today, Karen. Wishing we could share some of your yummy grilled cheese sandwiches and talk about plans for your beautiful garden. XO, L
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CAROL KNIGHT I was lucky enough to meet Karen when we shared a dining table on a particularly wonderful cruise last year. My friend, Sue, and I were the only Brits on a table of Canadians who were all very friendly and great fun. A group of us shared a lovely day on a beach on Mykonos of which I have very fond memories of Karen enjoying the sea and sunshine. Other than her travel companion, Kelly, none of us were aware of Karen’s battle with illness. We planned to get together on another cruise but Karen was too sick to travel again. Even after just a very short fiendship, Karen will hold a special place in my heart.
Thinking about you Karen and. missing you. You were such a special and important person in my life and I am missing our annual holiday chats and catch ups. Wishing you were with us.