Karen’s Obituary Karen Lee Flores, 69, peacefully slipped away, from this Earth, with her loving family and dog, Annabelle, by her side on the evening of January 13th. Karen was born December 8, 1949, in Port Angeles. She graduated from Port Angeles High School and from Peninsula College, where she met the love of her life, Bernie Flores.
Karen and Bernie were married on St. Patrick’s Day, in 1973. This year would have marked 47 years of their union. The pair had two sons, Brian and Benjie, and Karen loved her boys more than anything.
Before the boys were school-aged, Karen managed an in-home day-care so she could stay home and take care of them while Bernie built houses. Together they owned Flores Construction. Karen did the books and Bernie, along with the boys (as they got older) constructed the houses.
Together they created a number of beautiful, custom homes all over the Port Angeles area. Along with her Flores Construction bookkeeping, Karen had several other careers in her lifetime. Immediately following high school, she worked at First National Bank until she enrolled at Peninsula College.
While attending school, she worked in the College office as an office assistant until she graduated with her AA degree. She then went on to work for the Olympic National Park, at the Visitor’s Center, as a bookkeeper, until her first son Brian was born. One of Karen’s favorite working memories occurred in Alaska, at Waterfall Resort, where Bernie was a fishing guide for several summers.
She and the boys spent the summer of 1982, in Alaska, with him. Karen worked in the store at the resort and the boys “guided” trips to “the waterfall” for tips. In 1985, Karen started working for Clallam County, in the Commissioner’s office, where she later served as Clerk of the Board.
After spending several years in the Commissioner’s Office, she transferred to the Office of Human Res. Anyone that Karen helped over the years has said she was the most thoughtful, kind, helpful, and caring person. After nearly 25 years with Clallam County, she retired to do more of the things that she loved.
In her spare time, Karen loved to garden, craft and sew, put together photo albums for her grandkids, spend time with her animals and, most recently, found a passion for researching her genealogy and was working on several family trees at the time of her death. Karen and Bernie loved to travel together and had many special adventures with friends and family to places such as Mexico, Hawaii, California, Arizona and Alaska. Karen loved her grandchildren and great-grandchildren, and each one of them brought a special love to her life.
They all loved their “Gramma” Karen, and she loved their joyful times together, which often consisted of making something in the kitchen or crafting. After her passing, her grandkids gathered and cooked breakfast into the wee hours in her kitchen, laughing and crying with each other and telling stories of Gramma Karen. They talked about how she made the best top ramen and bacon on the planet!
As well as the smallest but most delicious pancakes ever! No one quite knows her cooking secrets, but family and friends think it was mostly just the love she poured into her recipes. While the children reminisced in the kitchen, the other family members sat in the living room comforted by the laughter, knowing how special this moment was and how happy this gathering would have made her.
We know Karen is now at peace and out of pain, and are comforted by the outpouring of love shown by all family and friends for this very special woman. Karen is survived by her mother, Clare Judge; her brothers, Bill and Mike (Lynn) McFarland; sister, Sue McFarland; her loving husband, Bernie; their two sons, Benjie and Brian (Jeni); grandchildren, Kylee, Katyn, Bryna, Tanner, River and Hunter; and great grandchildren, Kameron and Braelin. There will be a Celebration of Life in the spring or summer months, to remember this loving, kind, caring woman’s special time on this Earth.
Drennan & Ford Funeral Home in Port Angeles is entrusted with her arrangements. Please sign the online guestbook for her family at www. drennanford.com.
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