Karen Johnson

Karen Sue Swolley was born December 9, 1943, in Atlantic, Iowa, the daughter of Vernon Leroy and Cora May (Roe) Swolley and passed away Sunday, February 20, 2011, at the Cass County Hospice Center in Atlantic, Iowa.

She grew up in Atlantic attending Atlantic schools, and then graduated from High School in Des Moines, Iowa. She married Roscoe Johnson in Audubon County on May 26, 1967. Early in their marriage, the couple lived on a farm near Ross where she worked with Roscoe caring for the dairy cattle. In 1975 they moved to Hamlin, where Roscoe passed away in April of 1989. At that time, Karen moved to Salt Lake City, Utah, where she worked as a live in nurse's aide. In 1995 she returned to Iowa living in Council Bluffs and Griswold until moving to her current home in Exira.

Karen worked as a cook and waitress at the Valley restaurants, as a nurse's aide at the Friendship Home in Audubon and the Atlantic Care Center, and as a seamstress at DeLong Sportswear.

She was always there for Suzie, attending her sports, 4-H and girl scouts activities. She also enjoyed cooking, crocheting, knitting, needle point and cross stitching.

Karen was preceded in death by her husband, Roscoe; her parents, Vernon and Cora Swolley; her grandparents, William and Mary Swolley and Rex and Carrie Marshall; her sisters, Sandra Swolley, Carol Jayne, Linda Von Voltenburg and Betty White; and her step-granddaughter, Elizabeth Hansen.

She is survived by her daughter, Suzie Hansen of Brayton; her son-in-law, Bryan Hansen of Atlantic; her grandchildren, Michael Johnson of New York, Cody Barnes and Christa Dawn Nullally both of Iowa City, Iowa; her siblings, Margaret (Richard) Andersen of Brayton, Iowa, Nancy (Tom) Wills of Council Bluffs, Iowa, Chris (Jerry) Freland of Belle Plain, Iowa, Cathy Zimmerman of Columbus, Nebraska, Mary Swolley of Keota, Iowa, Donna Kline of Iowa City, Iowa, and William "Bill" Swolley of Wellman, Iowa; her brothers-in-law, Claude Jayne of Exira, Iowa, and Dick White of Wellman, Iowa; many nieces, nephews, other relatives and friends.

Graveside services will be held at 10:30 a.m. on Tuesday, February 22, 2011, in St. John's Cemetery, west of Exira.

A luncheon will be held following the graveside service at TJ's Pour House in Exira, Iowa.

Hockenberry-England Funeral Home in Audubon, Iowa, is in charge of the arrangements.