Our beautiful daughter Karen Mashburn passed away at her home in Snohomish on May 19, 2016. The daughter of Bill and Margaret Mashburn, Karen was born in Yakima on Oct. 11, 1961. She graduated from West Valley High School and then finished off college at the University of Washington, where she earned her Master’s Degree in Economics and became a Banking Mortgage Loan Officer. Most of her adult life she was challenged by her health, but it never stopped her from achieving her goals. She worked part time from her home for the Gates Foundation, researching the economics and banking systems of Poland. She was a great communicator and gave talks on how to live and deal with chronic pain. Her listeners left inspired and with a new zest for life. An avid reader, her favorite subject was the history of WWII and she had read most every book written by or about Winston Churchill.
Karen’s whole life revolved around animals, especially dogs and horses. She had three corgis, a boxer, and the last four years, a beautiful German Shepherd named Heidi, who she trained to be a certified service dog. It was Heidi who barked out of an upstairs window to tell the neighbors that something was wrong inside the house.
Karen’s first horse show was at age 6 on a borrowed horse, where she won the Kindergarten Walk Trot class. From then on she became an accomplished equestrienne, and for the next 35 years, winning many championships, showing her horses up and down the Pacific Coast, as far north as Vancouver B.C. In 1980 at the Cow Palace in San Francisco, Karen and Owata Hobby won six classes and were named Amateur and Open Western Pleasure Champions of the show. She was always a gracious winner or loser. She was a beautiful and stylish rider, extremely smart, and cool under pressure at tough competitions. Seeing Karen on a horse was best described as elegance in motion. Karen is survived by her parents; a sister, Jean; aunts Barbara Schultz and Marilyn Lewis; cousins Craig, Rod, and Tyler Schultz, and Jay and Ann Lewis. She was very close to Craig’s daughter Rene Jauhola. Also her two special little friends Emily (11) and Curtis Walker (6) of Snohomish.
Karen was preceded in death by grandparents William and Lucille Mashburn, Margaret Smith, Harold H. Schultz, uncle William Lewis, and her very best friend and special uncle Robert H. Schultz (Uncle Birdie).
A memorial service will be held at St. Michael’s Episcopal Church, 5 South Naches Ave., Yakima, on Saturday, June 18, 2016 at 1:00 p.m. In lieu of flowers memorial contributions may be made to the Yakima Humane Society, 2405 W. Birchfield Rd., Yakima, WA 98901.
Arrangements under the direction of Keith & Keith Funeral Home, Yakima, WA.
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