Karen Kay Schmidt was born on September 27, 1946 in Caldwell, Kansas to Robert Lee and Thelma Catherine (Ewertz) Vavra.  She grew up on the family farm established by her grandfather, Norbert Vavra. She attended a one room schoolhouse known as Blackstone Grade School and graduated from Bluff City High School in 1964.  She furthered her education at the Wichita Business College.

On September 16, 1967, she was united in marriage with Ronnie Joseph Schmidt in Wichita, Kansas.  They lived a short time in Wichita before moving to Ronnie's hometown of Pfeifer, Kansas.  The couple were blessed with 2 sons, Nathan and Preston.  The family moved to Argonia, Kansas in 1986 where they lived for several years before moving to the farm, northwest of Norwich, Kansas.  Ronnie passed away on February 17, 2019.

Karen retired from Southwestern Bell/AT&T, where she worked for many years as a utility dispatcher and customer service representative.

A true diamond in the rough, Karen had a heart of gold, sometimes expressing it in very colorful ways.  She never backed away from bargain shopping, garage sales being her favorite, always buying for everyone other than herself.  She donated many items to the homeless and was known to randomly stop by when no one was home to leave a special gift for someone.  She and Ronnie made a great team growing a bountiful garden, canning, making wine, and butchering deer, hogs, and chickens. She was always excited to get the camper ready for a weekend trip of fun and fishing with her boys.  She also had a talent of knowing the news before the newspaper printed it!

Shortly after Ronnie's passing, Karen became a resident of Spring View Manor in Conway Springs, Kansas.  This is where she passed away shortly after midnight on February 26, 2022 at the age of 75.  She is preceded in death by her parents and husband.

Karen will be deeply missed by her sons, Nathan Schmidt of Norwich and Preston Schmidt of Argonia; sisters, Roberta Pryor of Wakita, Oklahoma and Julia Vavra of Manchester, Oklahoma; nieces and nephews: Lynette Evans of Wichita, Gina Koehl of Blackwell, Oklahoma, Lee Mund (Kathy) of San Diego, California, Brandy Rice (Eric) of Ark City, Kansas, James Williams of Anthony, Kansas, Summer Williams of Wichita, and Autumn Kloefkorn (Aaron) of Manchester; great-nieces and nephews: Stephany Carter (Chris) of Wichita, Colby Evans of the United States Navy, Brittany Koehl of San Antonio, Texas, Wylie Williams of Anthony, and Lawson Kloefkorn of Manchester; other relatives and friends.

Visitation is 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. and a short service will be at 3:00 p.m. Monday, February 28, 2022 at Prairie Rose Funeral Home, Anthony with Father Andrew Walsh officiating.  Family will remain after the service to receive friends.

Graveside Service is 11:00 a.m. Tuesday, March 1, 2022 at Holy Cross Cemetery in Pfeifer, Kansas with Father Curtis Carlson officiating.

Memorial contributions may be made to the Bluff City Cemetery and can be sent in care of the funeral home.

Prairie Rose Funeral Homes, 602 E Main St ~ Anthony, Kansas  67003