Karen Carsten, 54, of McCausland, passed away, Monday, June 23, 2025, at Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn., surrounded by her loving family.
Visitation was held from 4 p.m. – 7 p.m., Monday, June 30, at the Halligan-McCabe-DeVries Funeral Home. A service celebrating her life was held at 7 p.m. Private burial was in McCausland Cemetery. Memorials may be made to K-9 Kindness Rescue, Inc. or the Caitlin Clark Foundation.
Karen Kaye Carsten was born on May 5, 1971, in Iowa City, daughter of Larry and Sandra Jo (DePover). She was united in marriage to Brian Carsten on May 22, 1995.
Karen was a 1989 graduate of Davenport Central High School and later received an associate’s degree in interior design. She worked most recently for North Scott Community School District as a paraprofessional.
Karen loved her children more than anything and was very proud of their accomplishments. She liked knowing where they were at all times and always knew what was going on. Her favorite thing to do was sit on her back porch sipping on coffee or wine.
Besides her children, Karen loved keeping busy in her yard, tending to her flowers and plants. She enjoyed driving around in her 2004 convertible Mustang, golfing with the girls, shopping with her sister, antiquing, and spending time with her dog, Madam Scarlett. Karen was a Caitlin Clark superfan, which stemmed from her family connection to the Iowa Hawkeyes.
Karen found the beauty in life and had an amazing gift of making everyday things feel important. She gave the best advice and made those around her feel valued.
Those left to honor her memory include her husband, Brian, children; Kyle (Audrey) Carsten, Kayelynn Carsten (Mat Garrison), and Jayce Bradley Carsten, sister, Trisha (John) Lusso, niece, Emily Lusso, mother-in-law, Nannette Carsten-Davis (Larry), father-in-law, Terry Carsten, sister-in-law Christine (Kent) Keeshan, brother-in-law Bradley Carsten, and nephew Tommy Keeshan and niece Jenna Keeshan.
She was preceded in death by her parents, and brother, Bradley Russell.
Online tributes may be expressed at www.hmdfuneralhome.com.
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