Karen has served on the Board since 2017. Karen’s family first moved to De Pere when she was in middle school. Karen married Karl Schmidt who grew up in De Pere. If you remember Schmidt Greenhouse on Jordan Road, that is his roots, so to speak.

Karen and Karl lived in many cities but came back to live in the area knowing what a great heritage is here and wonderful place to raise their children. Karen moved across the country, yet she always remembered thinking that De Pere Greenwood Cemetery would be a lovely burial setting… on the river and so peaceful. Years later, with her love of ancestry and family history, she discovered that seven generations of her family have lived in De Pere and many are buried in Greenwood Cemetery. This including her great, great, great, Grandfather who died in the Civil War.

Buying a plot was far from their minds until this in spring 2016 with the untimely death of their son, Matt, who died in a car accident. Although a tragic event brought them to Greenwood, they are pleased to have some of the last available lots and hope to help to preserve the integrity and rich history of this beautiful site. So, therefore Karen wants to give back to the community the love and to help continue to preserve and protect the rich history of this cemetery. Karen has been working hard to preserve the cemetery, to the point that her and Karl donating the restoration of the Northeast corner of the cemetery. She looks forward to working with the Historical Committee to record and preserve those buried in the cemetery.