Karen Maureen Nielsen's Obituary
Karen Maureen Nielsen, passed peacefully to her eternal reward from her home in Dunnellon, Florida on July 25, 2023.
She was born in Miami-Dade, Florida, to (Cmdr.) E. Kevin Nielsen and Hildegard Gertrude Nielsen on November 11, 1947. She had one brother, Kevin Michael Nielsen.
Karen spent most of her life in Jacksonville, Florida, and the Florida Keys. She particularly relished the time her family spent in Europe while accompanying her father on US Navy deployments; especially their time spent in Italy.
Karen graduated from Bishop Kenny High School, in Jacksonville. She attended the University of Maryland in Munich, Germany and Santa Fe College, Gainesville, Florida.
She began her professional career as a second grade school teacher in Jacksonville. She later excelled at real estate and property management throughout Florida.
In her private time, she was an amazing artist in more than one medium: photography, painting, wood carving, knitting and needlepoint. She was an enthusiastic gardener; treasuring her Orchids and Angel's Trumpets.
Whether snorkeling in the Keys or installing underwater cameras off the bulkhead of her dock so she could watch tarpon and other sea life anytime she wanted, Karen's appreciation for wildlife was unsurpassed. What started as rescuing injured birds or turtles she found near her dock or on the side of a road, evolved into her volunteer work in Marathon at the Wild Bird Center, Turtle Hospital and the Dolphin Research Center.
Predeceased by her loving parents and brother, Karen leaves countless friends and family from around the country and, indeed, the world, to cherish her memory. This includes her precious Yorkies, Ella and Katie.
Karen's life will be celebrated with a funeral service at St. Marks Episcopal Church in Palatka, Florida on September 2nd at 11 am. An informal reception will follow in the Parish Hall.
Her blessed ashes will be dispersed over the ocean off the coast of Marathon, Florida, in November.
In lieu of flowers, please consider donations in her memory to the wildlife centers in Marathon; or Hospice of Marion County whose care and compassion eased her transition from this life to her eternal home.
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