Karen Katherine Wolf

Karen Katherine (Rausch) Wolf, 77, went to be with the Lord after a long battle with Parkinson’s Disease as the sun rose on April 29, 2018, at St. Gabriel’s Community in Bismarck, ND. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 10:00 a.m. on Wednesday, May 2, at the Church of Corpus Christi, 1919 N. 2nd St., with Reverend Paul Becker presiding. Burial will be held at St. Mary’s Cemetery following the funeral and luncheon. Visitation will be held from 3:30-6:00 p.m. on Tuesday, May 1, at Parkway Funeral Home, 2330 Tyler Parkway, with a prayer vigil to begin at 4:30 p.m. Karen was born on September 25, 1940, in Bismarck, North Dakota, as the sixth of seven children to A.P. and Minnie (Kramer) Rausch. She graduated from St. Mary’s Central High School, St. Theresa College in Winona, MN, and Colorado State University in Ft. Collins, CO. She began working at MDU teaching about the use of gas appliances, later taught in Colorado, and then returned to Bismarck as an interior decorator at the family business, Rausch Furniture Company. She married Albert Wolf in 1974, and together they raised three daughters while Karen was a full-time mother, homemaker and volunteer. Karen had a love of music that she shared freely as a cantor and member of the church choir, volunteer and patron of the Bismarck-Mandan Symphony Orchestra, and ever-present supporter at her daughters’ countless piano lessons and recitals, band concerts, music competitions, and choir performances. She led the St. Mary’s Central High School music parents’ association and continued to support the performing arts programs long after her children graduated. For this, she and Al were inducted into the St. Mary’s Central High School Hall of Fame in 2009. Karen was a gracious hostess, opening her home and preparing many meals and events for family and friends from near and far. She loved the beautiful things in life and spent countless hours tending to her extensive flower gardens and making quilts, art, stained glass, clothing and other crafts. Karen had a deep faith and developed many very special friendships over the years as an active member of her parish communities and bible studies, a Sunday school leader, church choir member, and founder of a preschool program and mothers’ group. She worked in development at what was then Mary College, and along with Al had been a long-time supporter of the University of Mary. Most of all, Karen was a loving and dedicated wife, mother, sister and daughter. Karen is survived by her loving husband, Albert Wolf; three daughters, Gretchen (Travis Schulz) Wolf, Heidi (Mark) Mankey, and Anna (Anthony) Lee; five grandchildren, Eli and Ava Schulz; Michael and Charles Mankey; and Lucy Lee; her sister, Audrey (Edward) Behrendt; two brothers, Bob (Maggie) Rausch and Tom (Twylla) Rausch; and many nieces, nephews, cousins and friends. Karen was preceded in death by her parents; her sisters, Mildred Gallagher and Mary Ann Rausch; and her brother, Vernon Rausch. Special thanks to Twylla Rausch and the dedicated staff at St. Gabriel’s Community for the many years of care they provided to Karen. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to St. Mary’s Central High School, University of Mary, Bismarck-Mandan Symphony Orchestra, or the Abused Adult Resource Center.