KAREN STARR GIBBS' BIRTHDAY JULY 22

KAREN SUE STARR (GIBBS)

Karen, Lanny's youngest sister, was a teenager when I first began dating Lanny. While he was in Vietnam I would grab my niece Dennette, and we would ride to Plymouth for a visit with the Starr family. We got to know Karen a little better. She is not pretentious but a genuinely kind and caring individual in addition to being pretty, smart and entertainingly funny.  Lanny has given a nice tribute to Karen at the end of this birthday wish.  Be sure to check it out.  The following information is taken from a biography written by Nola, Karen's mother when Karen was younger. I've shortened it for this blog:

“Karen Sue Starr, the seventh child and third daughter of Carl Henry Starr and Nola Lucille Hopkins Starr, was born July 22, 1955, in Tremonton, Utah. Since there were 16 years between Karen and her only living sister (Margene the oldest having died at birth)and 4 boys between them, Karen was rather special.  Karen Sue was blessed and named by her father, Carl Starr, September 4, 1955, in the Plymouth ward chapel.

backrow: Sandra, Curtis, Lanny 
frontrow:  Chad, Karen and Kim



From the time Karen was 6 weeks old she attended Jr. Sunday School with her mother,a teacher, and began going in the nursery class when she was 20 months old. She led the sacrament gem for the entire Jr. Sunday School when she was 2 ½ years old. It was the first article of faith and she knew it by heart.
“At 3 ½ Karen can draw a pretty good house with plenty of smoke from the chimney, and a face with curls around it. She memorizes little poems for church quickly, and loves to dance to music. She sits at the piano and sings all the Primary and Sunday School songs. At 5, she likes to take mother's flannel board and pictures and tell stories to her imaginary Sunday School or to her dolls. Likes to draw and color.

Her first grade class was held in a large tin Quonset hut as the school was overcrowded.

Seventh, eighth and ninth grades were spent at the new Junior High school in Garland. The ninth grade she began her 4 year course in LDS Seminary.In a junior high assembly she was presented with a necklace and certificate for top science student. Karen's high school years at the Bear River high school at Garland were busy active years. She was a member of the Pep club, a girl's marching group, which participated in parades and at the school basketball and football games.

Karen was active in the F.H.A.(Future Homemakers of America) at Bear River and participated at two state conventions at Salt Lake with girls from her school and other schools. They enjoyed staying in motels, playing pranks on each other, and generally giving the chaperones a bad time, I suppose.

During her senior year Karen took a teacher training class in which she spent 2 hours a day at the North Park elementary school as an aid to Mr. Pierson, a fifth grade teacher. The children liked her and even years after would wave to her when seeing her on the street.  She was also chosen by her Journalism teacher, Mr. Blackam, to be a co-editor on the school paper, the “Searchlight”. She won a scholarship to Utah State University in Journalism.
 

Karen respected her church and parent's wishes that she not date until age sixteen. She was quite disturbed when a handsome boy had asked her to the Jr. Prom and she had to say, “No.” A big high school highlight was getting her driver's license after finishing her Driver's Education class. She was 16.

She was active in Mutual when she become of age to attend. Karen earned her “Individual award” in church each year through her teens having a near 100% attendance at Sunday School, Mutual, and Sacrament meeting each year.

Karen's college years were spent at Utah State University in Logan where she lived in the David O. McKay student living quarters dormitories. Here she made many close friends and had a lot of fun times. She began a journalism course but changed to a secretarial course. The summer after her first year of college she worked as a secretary at Thiokol Corporation. She went back to school in the fall for one quarter and then accepted a job as a secretary at Boyce Construction Co. in Tremonton.

The fourth of July in Plymouth is always a big day with parade, concessions, and a 2-day rodeo. Karen always attends both rodeos decked out in new shirt and Levis. Often she helped out in the hamburger stand too. She liked to work in the same stand as her Uncle John.

Birthdays were always remembered with a party for at least the first 12 years or each child's life, and always a cake for supper and all singing “Happy Birthday”. One special birthday remembered had a carnival theme. The new garage was decorated and booths made. Tickets were given out for pony rides, fortune telling, dart throwing, fish pond, etc. Paper hats and balloons made a colorful party.

Vacations were fun too. Usually each summer as the children were growing up, the family made camping trips to the canyon, sleeping in tents and cooking outdoors. On Karen's third birthday the family was at Tony's Grove in Logan canyon. She went with them on a 3-mile hike to a secluded lake higher up, riding piggy back on Lanny's back when she got tired. In the evening they had a birthday party at camp with cake, games, and presents.
 

Grandparents were an enjoyable part of Karen's growing years. Her Grandpa Hopkins lived to be 91 years old. He always called her “Sue Ann”. She never knew her Grandmother Hopkins as she died before Karen was born.  Her Grandmother and Grandfather Starr were very close to her as she saw them often. As a tiny child, she used to side up to Grandpa Starr and ask for gum. Grandma Starr has crocheted many pairs of pillow slips and and many doilies for Karen.

Karen met Val Dee Gibbs of Portage while she was in high school. He was a year ahead of her in school. She took special notice of him when she was about a junior. She liked him a lot. Later after her graduation she started dating him some –and then some more – and some more, and in 1975 at Christmas time he gave her a diamond engagement ring. They were married for time and all eternity in the Logan temple.”

Karen, Richelle and Gary

Karen and Craig

Karen and Richelle

Comments by Karen's older brother Lanny: Karen was always thought of as the spoiled little sister. Being the last child she avoided the strict disipline of her father and could do "NO" wrong. Of course Karen will tell you that was because she never did any thing wrong. The truth was as her older brother I had literally wore out her parents by taking the spankings and scoldings, so that by the time she came along they were both worn out and had mellowed to the point that they simply let her get away with murder. It's really due to my bad examples that she turned out to be the sweet kid she is today.

She will always be my little "Sis" and I both love and appreciate her. As some of us older kids grew up and moved away, she along with Kim, became the care givers of our aging parents. She probably doesn't realize it but just knowing she was there to watch over them and care for them made us older kids feel so much better and at ease. It would have been a much different situation if Karen and Kim had not been living close by and we would have had to rely on outside care givers and long distance communications with our parents. You don't know how much we appreciated having you ready and willing to take care of them. God bless you sis! Happy Birthday and many more