Karen Wikberg

May 20, 1948 - November 03, 2020

It is with great sadness that we announce Karen's passing after a seven-year struggle with pulmonary hypertension and complications related to limited scleroderma. Karen was a woman of brilliant intellect, boundless love and integrity, and many talents. She was a thrice-produced playwright, singer, painter, teacher, unparalleled genealogy sleuth for fifty years, tax preparer specializing in self-employed artists, Crown prosecutor, partner to Bob, and an amazing mother to her two daughters, Kristin and Jessica. Born in Winnipeg to Ralf and Swanny Wickberg, Karen's family lived in Minneapolis, Montreal, Toronto, Regina, and Edmonton before settling in West Vancouver in 1960. Karen graduated from UBC in 1970 with a BA in English, and then completed further studies in playwriting and teaching. She always stayed connected to the arts and theatre, ultimately working as a playwright for many years, with productions in Vancouver and Calgary. On her fiftieth birthday, she graduated from UBC Law School with a JD (LLB) in 1998, and worked for 13 years as a Provincial Crown prosecutor in Surrey and Vancouver, including as part of the prosecution team on the Air India trial. After she retired, she lived in Las Vegas, painting and volunteering for the Obama re-election campaign and advocating for stricter gun laws. She loved to travel, eat delicious food, watch the news, talk with family and friends, and think and theorize about the world. She loved life and especially her family. She was deeply loved in return and will be profoundly missed. She was predeceased by her father, Ralf Wickberg. She is survived by her daughters, Kristin (Colin) and Jessica (Mackenzie); grandchildren, Karis, Bronwyn, and Martin; love of her life, Bob; mother, Swanny; and sister, Cheri (Gordon). In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Pulmonary Hypertension Association of Canada (phacanada.ca).