Karen Rae Fowler

Karen Rae Fowler passed away on Wednesday, July 22, 2026, at home, surrounded by her loving family.

She was born on November 15, 1938, in Idaho Falls, Idaho, to Ivan F Anderson and Grace Thelma Crabtree Anderson. She came home from the hospital to her lifelong best friend, her sister, Rosiland Gay.

Karen spent her early years in Idaho Falls, Idaho, where she explored the sidewalks around town with her sister and friends. She was a frequent visitor to Farr’s Ice Cream, where she would take the tour so she could receive her free ice cream cone at the end. To her, ice cream was her favorite food group. Those visiting Mom in the late evening hours would be enticed to finish the day with ice cream.

She attended schools in Idaho Falls and Roberts and was part of the first class to graduate from West Jefferson High School. She was active in school activities and played the clarinet in the band, which led to a lifelong love of music.

After gathering courage from her friends, she asked the cutest guy in school to a girls' choice dance, which led to a lifelong dance with her sweetheart, LaVern Fowler. They were married on July 17, 1958, and were later sealed in the Logan Temple on May 10, 1960. They enjoyed 64 years together, making their home a place where family and friends loved to gather.

Karen was a lifelong member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. She possessed a firm testimony of her Savior, Jesus Christ, and served faithfully in various leadership callings. One of her most cherished callings was serving as a missionary at the Family History Center on the BYU–Idaho campus.

Mom could often be found playing the piano and clarinet, filling our home with music. She played in the Firth Orchestra for 17 years, beginning on her 70th birthday and continuing until a few months before her passing.

Karen loved sewing. In recent years, she made quilts for her four daughters, her sister, and all of her grandchildren and great-grandchildren—a total of 26 quilts.

Mom had a sweetness about her that friends and family felt and often mentioned when talking about her. She will be remembered for her fun-loving nature and her quick wit.

She is survived by her daughters, Debbie (Dan) Timm of Rigby, Cheryl Lee of Rigby, Janet (Jamie) McKell of Ucon, and Lynda Fowler of Chester, Montana; eight grandchildren; 13 great-grandchildren; and many nieces and nephews.

She was preceded in death by her sweetheart, Vern Fowler; her parents, Ivan and Grace Anderson; and her sister, Rosiland Taylor.

Funeral services will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Wednesday, July 29, 2026, at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 364 North 4100 East, Rigby, Idaho. A visitation for family and friends will be held from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, July 28, 2026, at Eckersell Funeral Home, 101 West Main Street, Rigby, Idaho. The family will receive friends Wednesday morning from 9:30 to 10:45 a.m. at the church prior to the funeral service. Interment will follow at the Parker Cemetery.