Karen Marie Flanagan

Karen Marie Flanagan passed away quietly on October 12, 2023. She had suffered from surgery and related illnesses and ended her struggle peacefully with her sister and partner beside her.

Karen had a very busy life and enjoyed many hobbies and worked avidly at them after her retirement from a varied nursing career of many years. Karen was a very caring and faithful friend.  She was always looking out for her friends and associates. After working back East for a time, she moved to Denver. Here she met and married Michael in 1968. 

Karen had many hobbies including gardening and puzzles; she loved cooking and entertaining at home. She was creative in her various crafts and special interests. She received a Master Gardener Certificate in 1984. Karen was a member of the Rocky Mountain Unit of the Herb Society of America. Karen had volunteered at Fairmount Memorial Cemetery and 4-Mile House where she met many close and long-term friends. Karen was well known in her neighborhood and people enjoyed her gardens and conversations. She helped organize her neighbors to get Krisana Park declared an historic neighborhood in Denver.

Karen was born in Syracuse, NY on January 11, 1942, the eldest child of Rigmor Marie Harder and Kennth Clarke Ford.  She is survived by her sister, Susan Anne Ford, niece Julie Anne Taylor, nephew Jeffery Lee Ford, their spouses, grandnieces Kate and Claire, Sister-in-Law, Nancy Ebert Ford, and partner Thomas Torgove. She is predeceased by her brother, Lee John Ford and by her husband, Michael E. Flanagan.

She graduated from New York State University at Plattsburgh, NY in 1959 and later received a Nurse Practitioners Certificate in Denver. She worked in various organizations including Rose Memorial Hospital, Denver Juvenile Detention Center, Colorado University.

In lieu of flowers, you might make donations in her name at the Dumb Friends League, Leslie A. Malone Center of Denver.