Karen Kelley

Karen Baker Kelley

“I was born of parents with golden hearts on November 6, 1961 and I now take my place and journey to the next phase, level, or place beyond what I can comprehend on this earth. I was additionally blessed with two loving brothers and a sister that were my strength, inspiration and stability throughout my journey of life.

My greatest blessings were the privilege of being a mother to three incredible, awesome, beautiful daughters that graced my life on earth in ways they may not even begin to understand. They were my teachers as I grew and learned from them. To my daughter, Kristi, whose courage, commitment, vulnerability, nurturing and maturity I respect and honor. Your journeys haven’t always been easy.  To my daughter, Trina, whose strength, humor, talent and perspective continuously teach me, get me to laugh and see from another point of view. To my daughter, Brittany, whose intuition, kindness, perseverance, compassion and constant understanding see me through it all – loving unconditionally. Thank you daughters for always being there to support me during good times and bad. For all the love notes, smiles, hugs, and I Love You’s, I thank you. Thanks for being such profound gifts in my life and teaching me about being a parent. Your love and compassion inspire me.

To my brother, Glen, who will always be my big brother with my mom’s eyes and my dad’s gentle ways. To my sister, Bonnie, who wears many hats for me and whose influence is far reaching as a sister, friend, and mother. Thanks to all of my family.

To all my true friends who, when I made choices that seemed a bit screwed up, didn’t think I did a permanent job. Thank you for your unconditional love and acceptance.

To ALL my friends, THANK YOU for being a part of my life!!

Last but not least, I give thanks to the man upstairs who has bestowed such incredible gifts on me for which I am so grateful.

I am blessed. Love All Ways. xxoo”

Karen Baker Kelley, 59, peacefully met her family in Heaven on December 16, 2020 at home, surrounded by her family. She had struggled with dementia for 5 years. During her battle with the disease, she lived with her sister Bonnie, and then spent her last months at Legacy House of Park Lane in Farmington. We would like to express our sincere gratitude to the entire Slaughter family who provided incredible care and support in her time of need. We would also like to thank Legacy House & Inspiration Home Health for the personal, gentle and loving environment they provided in her last months.

Karen was born at Dee Hospital in Ogden, Utah to Twila Humpherys Baker and Orlin Harold Baker. She was the youngest of four children. She grew up a tom-boy and a daddy’s girl. She loved to sit in the garage and hand her dad tools to work on the family car. He also introduced her to her first camera. She married her High School sweetheart, Nick Kelley, in 1980 and divorced in 1982. Later in 1989, she married Jonathan Rizzo until 1992. Even though they were not together, Jonathan continued to be a father figure in the girls’ lives and remained a great friend to Karen. She resided in Roy most of her life, where her girls went to school.

Karen had many passions in life. First and foremost were her three daughters which she cherished with her whole heart. She was an independent single mother who worked hard to provide for her three girls. She worked at Morton (later Autoliv) for over 20 years and made many life-long friendships along the way. Most people remember the vibrant spirited woman that could accomplish any project she set her mind to: publishing her own book, started her own photography business, and winning dozens of professional master photography awards.

Some of her other passions were photography, painting, art, gardening, sewing, and skiing. Karen loved to travel and take pictures of anything in nature, especially clouds and the many diverse landscapes of Utah. She also loved hearts, music, angels, dancing, learning new things, and going on photographic excursions with her daughters and friends. She was mesmerized by the beauty of flowers. When she was young, she would embroider roses and flowers. Later, she turned to gardening tulips, painting flowers, and photographing them. She was strong, independent and always had a DIY project going on at her home. She was proud to volunteer at the 2002 Winter Olympics and was an annual volunteer for the Utah Arts Festival for over 15 years.

She is survived by her brother Glen (LuAnn) Baker, and her sister Bonnie (John) Slaughter, her sister-in-law Nancy Baker, and her half-sister Linda (John L) Macdonald. Her children Kristi (Geoff) Vine, Trina Weller (Seth Wilks), and Brittany (Ryan) Gronwald, her grandchildren Trevin and Caden Gronwald, Dayton and Morgan Vine, and Lucas andTobias Weller, her many nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends.

She is preceded in death by her parents Orlin and Twila Baker, brother Gene Baker, and half-sisters Deloris Pitkin Bennett (Chuck) and Jeanette (Jess) Baker McTaggart.

She was our radiant light, our gleaming sunshine, and is now our guardian angel. She will be deeply missed and will remain in our hearts forever. Please add an angel to your Christmas tree in remembrance of her.

Services will be held on December 28, 2020 at 11:00 am. The services will be for family only in this time of social distancing. Services will be live-streamed by going to www.lindquistmortuary.com and scrolling to the bottom of Karen’s obituary page. In lieu of flowers please donate to your favorite charity in Karen’s name. A Celebration of life will be held in summer 2021.

Interment, Lindquist’s Washington Heights Memorial Park, 4500 Washington Blvd, Ogden

Services entrusted to Lindquist’s Layton Mortuary, 1867 No. Fairfield Road.

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