Karen Kristine (Heilsberg) Johns, 59, of Colfax, passed away Saturday, July 9, 2011 at Deaconess Medical Center in Spokane. Funeral Services will be held Saturday, July 16th at 11:00 am at the Colfax United Methodist Church. Viewing will be Thursday & Friday at Bruning Funeral Home. Burial will be at the Colfax Cemetery. Karen was born March 8, 1952 in Colfax to Donald and Christine (Filan) Heilsberg. Her family moved to Spokane when she was a young girl so she attended elementary school at the Roosevelt grade school and junior high at Sacajawea. They moved back to Colfax when Karen was a freshman in high school. She graduated as President of her senior class in 1970. Karen attended Washington State University for a couple years before she transferred to Eastern Washington University in Cheney. She married Scott Johns in 1972 and they later divorced. Karen graduated with two degrees; one1 in Industrial Arts and the other in Fine Arts. She did student teaching at Ferris High School in Spokane and later taught briefly in the Endicott School District. She moved to Colfax where she held several jobs around town including working at a gas station and also as a janitor for a time. She was always an animal lover and she enjoyed operating her own dog grooming business out of her home. Karen was an avid reader and could remember most anything she read. She was also very talented with painting and wood-working and was very active in the Colfax Civic Theatre as one of their main set-builders. This allowed her artistic side to shine through. For many years she enjoyed playing Santa Claus for friends and family in the Colfax area. She treasured spending time at the ranch at Wilcox and loved spending summers at Lake Pend O'Reille. She loved horses and had an extensive collection of horse related items. She is survived by her mother, Christine Heilsberg of Colfax; 2 sisters, Cindy (Mark) Lewis of Spokane and Cathy (Paul) O'Rourke of Spokane Valley and her brother, Jim (Sandy) Heilsberg of Colfax; as well as her lifetime companion Teresa Madole also of Colfax; 6 nieces & nephews and 6 great-nieces and great-nephews and her beloved poodle Lucy. Her father, Donald Heilsberg, preceded her in death. Memorial gifts are suggested to a charity of donor's choice. On-line guest book is at www.bruningfuneralhome.com
Bruning Funeral Home, Colfax, is in charge of the arrangements