Karen Johnson Freeze

Karen Johnson FREEZE Karen Johnson Freeze passed away March 19, 2009, in Seattle WA, after a courageous battle with pancreas cancer. She was born October 22, 1945, in Vancouver, WA, the daughter of Donald W. and Vera M. Johnson. As a devoted mother, Karen loved and nurtured two children, Katherine Elizabeth and Christopher Michael. As an able musician, Karen was an accomplished pianist and sang in choirs in the U.S and Europe for over 50 years. As a scholar, writer and teacher (PhD, Columbia University, History) Karen held posts at several institutions, most recently Charles University (Prague) and the University of Washington. And as an active volunteer, Karen directed ESL projects in the Czech Republic, and worked with A Rocha International, an environmental conservation charity based in the UK. A gifted linguist with natural curiosity about foreign cultures and peoples, Karen traveled broadly. During her life, she lived and worked in Denmark, Russia, Germany, and the Czech Republic, living and working in all their languages. Karen is survived by her mother, Vera M. Johnson, her sisters Robin L. Raphel and Deborah M. Johnson, and her children, Katie and Christopher. For information, please contact katiefreeze@gmail.com.