Karen Palmer

Life Legacy Karen Teresa Palmer, best known as Teresa by her friends and family, received her angel wings on Friday January 18, 2019 after a long 8 year battle with frontal temporal lobe dementia, she was 76 years old. Her passing was very peaceful. Teresa is survived by her daughter Marjorie and son-in-law Steven Livingstone, her daughter Rebecca and son-in-law Craig Dodd, her grandson Zachary Winland and his wife Callie, her granddaughter Rachel and her husband Brett Smith, and her ex-husband Donald Palmer. Teresa was born on August 8th 1942 in Washington DC. Her parents were Vera and Conway McCurry, an elementary school teacher and a DC police officer. Teresa was an only child and grew up in Suitland Maryland. She studied at the University of Maryland, where she was a Pi Beta Phi and a music major. Teresa married Donald Palmer on February 23rd 1963. Don was an officer in the United States Air Force and they moved to Kansas where she graduated from Wichita State University with a bachelors degree in Music Education. Teresa’s passion was MUSIC and she loved to play the piano. She sang in and directed several choirs, starting in high school, all throughout college, and well into her late 60’s at her church. She could harmonize to almost any song and could sing tenor, alto & second soprano. A consummate military officer’s wife, Teresa loved to entertain and took great pride in her home. She was very social, vivacious and full of life. She was fun to be with and had the most joyful infectious laugh. She was an avid tennis player for many years and played competitively in numerous tournaments, winning quite frequently with her notorious lobs! She made several friends on and off the court. Teresa was a wonderful mother to two daughters. She was funny, patient, kind, caring and generous. She had a great sense of humor and was outgoing and always up for trying new things. She had a gift for listening and making you feel special. Teresa was honest, loyal and very open about herself. Teresa traveled all over the world. She lived in the Philippines and traveled all throughout Asia and Germany where she saw most of Europe. She retired in Tucson in the early 90’s and volunteered for over 10 years at the West gift shop and the Pima County Sheriff’s Department. Teresa’s memorial service will be held on Wednesday February 20, 2019 at the Christ Presbyterian Church located at 6565 E Broadway in Tucson, AZ at 11:00am. In lieu of flowers, if you would like to make a donation in honor of Teresa, her favorite charities were the Humane Society, the ASPCA, Best Friends Animal Society or Heifer International. The Alzheimer’s Association would also be a good way to honor her memory.