Karen Morales

Karen Jean Morales of Burnsville, Minnesota, formerly of Bloomington, MN and Portsmouth, Rhode Island, passed away at age 75 in Shakopee, MN. A loving wife, mother, grandmother and great friend, she was granted peace in the early morning of August 16, 2026 after a long battle with Alzheimer’s.

Karen was born May 19, 1951 in Portsmouth, Rhode Island to Niles and Rita Anderson. She grew up on Rhode Island’s beaches and rocky shores, always treasuring her family trips to Common Fence Point. After her family moved to Minnesota, Karen graduated from Richfield High School in 1969 and chose to stay in the Twin Cities when her family relocated to Chicago for work.

Shortly afterward, Karen met the love of her life, Martin Morales, and the two of them married on August 3rd, 1973. They had their first child, Nathan Martin, on July 12, 1979, with Maria Anne following on October 8, 1981. A caring mother and a loving wife, Karen was also blessed with a myriad of devoted friends—many of whom also had children the same age—creating a wonderful community of extended family that was treasured by all. Karen enjoyed a career in human resources that began at Control Data. Over the years with various companies she worked in recruiting, staffing, payroll, and benefits. Always an asset due to her friendly nature and ability to get along with anybody, she valued her time at work because it was spent helping people.

Karen was a woman of many talents who enjoyed knitting, crochet, macramé, sewing, and making jewelry. She also had a green thumb – wherever she lived, it was full of plants, inside and out. Karen also possessed a great love for dogs, cherishing the time spent with her grandpuppies when they would come to visit. Later in life, she seemed most content with one of them by her side or in her lap, providing comfort and companionship. Karen enjoyed traveling to places that brought her close to the water. Road trips were a favorite, from driving along the River Road to time spent up north at Lake Superior with friends. Even at home in the Cities, she would spend hours at Lake Harriet having lunch, reading, and people watching. But above all, Karen loved the ocean. Vacations would often consist of trips back to the east coast to see her sister Fran and extended family, or to the west coast to visit Maria in San Francisco or San Diego.

She is preceded in death by her parents, Niles Herbert and Rita Anne Anderson.
She is survived by her husband of 53 years, Marty; their children, Nathan (Mindy), and Maria (Cody) Mendelow; their grandchildren, EJ Morales, Ava Franzwa and Olin Franzwa; her sister, Fran (Mike) Carriero; and many, many more loving nieces, nephews, family, friends and neighbors. She will be deeply missed and always remembered by everyone who was close to her.