Karen Patricia Alma, 79
Karen Patricia Alma passed away peacefully on March 27, 2019, at “The Lodge” at Buffalo Hill Terrace in Kalispell at the age of 79 years.
She was born Nov. 20, 1939, in Seattle, Washington, to Gordon Bain and Audrey Bessie Lynch. As a middle child she was preceded in death by her parents and her older brother William Lynch of Phoenix, Arizona.
She is survived by her husband James Alma of Kalispell; sister Beverly (Lynch) Elliott of Whitefish, sister-in-law Dolores (Knapp) Lynch of Kalispell; four children Kathleen (Templeton) Sjostrom and husband Steve of Columbia Falls, Bradley Templeton of Columbia Falls, Michael Templeton of Rockford Washington, David “Skip” Templeton and wife Kim of Spokane, Washington, and stepdaughter Diana (Alma) Kautzman and husband Danny of Cheney, Washington. She is a grandma to 11 grandchildren, 14 great-grandchildren and one great-great-grandchild, and nephews and nieces.
As a young child she grew up in Seattle and Port Angeles, Washington, before her parents moved to Missoula where she attended Paxson Elementary and Missoula County High School. After marrying at an early age, she lived in Dillon and Helena before moving to Spokane, Washington. She always called Montana her home and after Jim retired they moved there to be closer to her family.
She loved being around family and to cook especially during the holidays. As an accomplished natural artist she loved to paint and specialized in still life and landscape scenes. Her interests included antiques, and she became quite knowledgeable in the estate sale business, which she was involved in for nearly 18 years. She had an outgoing personality, who never met a stranger and one of the biggest hearts in the world. She was always willing to give to those in need because she just wanted to see the smiles on their faces.
A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. on April 6, at Buffalo Hill Terrace Chapel, 40 Claremont Street, Kalispell.
A memorial graveside service will be held at 2:30 p.m. on May 4 near the small chapel at Fairmount Memorial Park, 5200 W. Wellseley, Spokane, Washington.
Memorials may be made to Alzheimer’s Association, Montana Chapter Headquarters, 3010 11th Ave. N., Billings, MT 59101. Friends are encouraged to visit www.buffalohillfh.com to leave notes of condolences for the family. Buffalo Hill Funeral Home and Crematory caring for the family.