Karen L. Mahaffey

Karen L. Schrote Mahaffey, age 62, of Marion, went to be with the Lord peacefully on Saturday, September 16, 2023, at the Kobacker House in Columbus with her loving family by her side following a valiant three year battle with multiple myeloma which turned into a rare plasma cell leukemia. On October 22, 1960, Karen was born at Marion General Hospital in Marion, Ohio, the fourth of five children of the late Gerald Harvey and Mae Eileen (Knappenberger) Schrote. She graduated from River Valley High School in the class of 1979. She furthered her education at the Ohio State University, earning a home economics degree from their College of Agriculture in 1983. In 1994, Karen was set up on a blind date with mutual friends of Rick Mahaffey, and from there the rest is history. They were married the next year, on September 24, 1995, and they cherished one another through their 28 years of marriage. For 30 years, Karen was the sweet familiar face everyone knew and loved as the manager of the home department at Elder-Beerman in the Marion Mall until it closed in 2019. She then was the manager of the gift shop at the Grady Memorial Hospital for a few years. Very faithful, Karen was an active lifelong member of the Peace Community United Church of Christ in Waldo, where they will miss her beautiful soprano voice in the church choir. She helped at the church in numerous capacities, including with Sunday School and on their Church Consistory Board. To say Rick and Karen were huge Ohio State Buckeye fans would be an understatement. They were proud members of the OSU Marion Alumni Club, and Karen had served on their board. They also went to countless Buckeye games, both home and away. Having a green thumb, Karen loved to be outdoors tending her flower gardens every year. She also loved her cats, spoiling them endlessly. Most important of all to Karen, was being an aunt and great-aunt to her amazing nieces and nephews and great-nieces and nephews. She went to every event possible for them, and she loved to teach them to sew, about flowers, and would play any game that they asked! Her siblings wanted "to be sure to emphasize that she was the Favorite Aunt! Eileen knew it, Ron knew it, Melinda knew it, Susan knew it, and they all agree, it was such a beautiful thing." Karen truly had a heart of gold and was such a sweet, kind hearted soul, who always saw the best in everyone. She never wanted to be the center of attention, rather she preferred to be in the background helping her family and her church however she could. Left to cherish her memory are her beloved husband, Rick Mahaffey of Marion; four siblings: Eileen (Robert) Chappell of Cardington, Ronald (Kim) Schrote of Richmond, MI, Melinda (Steve) Hornsby of Waldo, and Mary Susan (Jim) Banks of Schwenksville, PA; 13 adored nieces and nephews; 17 cherished great nieces and nephews; three cousins: David Schrote, Mark Schrote, and Tom (Nina) Schrote; her mother-in-law, Frances Mahaffey of Marion; and a sister-in-law, Janie Mahaffey. Including her parents, Karen was preceded in death by an infant son in 1997; her aunt who was like her second mother, her mother's twin, Mary Ellen Knappenberger; her father-in-law, Henry Mahaffey; a sister-in-law and three brothers-in-law: Sharon (Richard) Farst, Ronnie Mahaffey, and Larry Mahaffey. Her family will greet friends from 4 – 7 pm on Friday, September 22, 2023, at Peace Community United Church of Christ, 4061 Columbus-Sandusky Rd S (SR 98), Marion. Services honoring her life will also be held there at 11 am on Saturday, with Rev. Joel Fetter officiating. For those unable to attend her services, you are welcome to watch the livestream of her service via the Peace Community UCC Facebook page (https://m.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100064791663401). Burial will follow in Waldo Cemetery. On behalf of her family, they would like to extend a heartfelt "Thank You" to everyone who was there to help Karen through her battle with cancer, especially the Riverside Methodist Hospital BMT Unit, and to everyone at the Kobacker Hospice House. Also, her family is comforted knowing she is in a better place, "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith." 2 Timothy 4:7 Memorial contributions may be made to the OhioHealth Foundation, designated to the Kobacker House (https://foundation.ohiohealth.com/programs/hospice-giving) or to Peace Community UCC, PO Box 176, Waldo, OH 43356. Snyder Funeral Homes, Denzer Chapel, are honored to serve Karen's family and your condolences may be expressed to them by visiting www.SnyderFuneralHomes.com.