"Today I close the door to the past, open the door to the future, take a deep breath, step on through and start a new chapter in my life." (unknown)
Obituary
Karon Avaleen Kirk Strandberg, our loving but crazy, half-marathon-a-day-walking, pickle ball-playing, always-learning-something-new mother, grandmother, aunt, sister, and friend, passed away at home on 27 February 2026 following a brief battle with pancreatic cancer.
Karon was born 6 March 1946 to Avaleen Wall Roundy Kirk and Robert Evelyn (Curley) Kirk in Payson, Utah. The youngest of 5 children, she was raised on Main Street in the small town of Goshen, Utah. She attended Goshen School through grade nine and graduated from Payson High School in 1964. She met Edward Odin Strandberg, Jr. in 1967 while both were employed by Kennecott Copper at their Tintic Mining District operation in Dividend, UT. Karon and Odin were married on 12 October 1968 in Goshen. They welcomed Edward Odin Strandberg, III, on 15 May 1969, and Heather Avaleen Strandberg on 26 February 1972. Due to Odin’s work, the family moved around quite a bit. Starting in Payson, Utah, the family also lived in Oklahoma City, OK, Casper, WY, Stansbury Park, UT, Sonoma, CA, and Anchorage, AK before finally settling in Fairbanks, AK in 1985. Alaska was Odin’s home (born and raised), and Karon agreed to live in the state for two years with hopes of returning to the western states to live closer to her family. That was in 1981. Odin passed away in 2000, and her kids were still in Fairbanks, so there she stayed and found her joy.
During the first 11 years of her marriage, Karon gave all she had to raising her children and providing a safe and warm place for the family to live, love, and have fun. During this time, she was active in her community by participating in various clubs and organizations, such as the Parent Teacher Association at her children’s school, a bridge club, and her church. When Ed and Heather got a little older, Karon started taking community college courses and then went to work as a bank teller and loan officer for National Bank of Alaska and Bank of the North. Eventually, she went back to school and earned an associate’s degree in paralegal studies. She then worked as a paralegal for Hompesch and Evans, APC, from 1998 to 2011. In 2011, Karon retired and spent the next few years figuring out what really made her happy. She made some amazing discoveries about herself. She found her joy in walking daily (working up to 35000 steps, often more, every day for 10 ½ years), playing pickleball and mahjong, knitting, reading, participating in the Alaska International Senior Games, being a member of the Pioneers of Alaska, and taking Osher Life-long Learning Institute classes (in the end, she found the Line Dancing class incredibly fun, even if she complained about having two left feet).
A big contributor to Karon’s joy was her membership in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. She loved her Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ and showed that through the way she served others. She loved the scriptures and the words of the latter-day prophets and apostles. Because of her faith, Karon was not afraid of death, even if she might not have thought it would come so soon.
Karon’s greatest treasure was her family. She gave everything she had in the way of time, talent, and substance to provide everything to her kids and grandkids. She made every effort to attend every event of any importance, no matter how small or great. She spent a lot of time in the car driving her kids and grandkids to lessons, practices, and activities. Karon made sure her kids and grandkids could ride a bike and tie their shoes before they went to kindergarten. If they wanted to learn to skate or play baseball, she made it happen. She always made sure there was something good for breakfast before school, like chocolate chip pancakes, and yummy snacks to come home to, like homemade bread with butter and jam. She spent a lot of nights cramped in her own bed to make room for a scared kid or two. And baking with her was always a special time to have fun and to talk about anything that needed to be said. Giving her all to her family and their friends brought her the honor of being called Grandma Karon by everyone. She loved that title.
Karon is survived by her son, Edward Odin Strandberg, III of Conroe, TX (LeAnne); daughter, Heather Avaleen Strandberg Hartman of Faribanks, AK (Chris); and grandchildren, Sarah Avaleen Hartman of Eugene, OR (Atticus); Lily (Robert Eugene) Hartman of Eugene, OR (Grace); Naomi Marie Hartman Foster of Fairbanks, AK (Jaren); Edward Odin Strandberg, IV of Bloomington, IN; and Joseph Salvador Strandberg and Olivia Rose Strandberg (Peter) both of Sheridan, IN. Karon was preceded in death by her parents, Robert Evelyn Kirk and Avaleen Wall Roundy Kirk; spouse, Edward Odin Strandberg, Jr; and siblings Ada Jean Kirk Rohletter, Evelyn Don Kirk, Wendell Curtis Kirk, Sandra Dianne Kirk, and Winifred Roundy White.
A memorial service for Karon will be held at 11 am on 28 March 2026 at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints located at 403 Lazelle Rd, Fairbanks, AK (corner of the Steese Hwy and Johanssen Expy). In lieu of flowers, the family is requesting the donation of shoes and boots, gently worn or new of any size, to be given to Fairbanks Memorial Hospital and the Center for Nonviolent Living. Please also feel free to sign up for your favorite 5K run this spring and channel Karon into your every step.
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I first met Karon about three years ago at a ‘Love Inc’ fundraiser in Fairbanks. With similar families of two children and having grown up in small towns with church based backgrounds, it was immediately apparent that unbeknownst to one another we had been leading parallel lives with common interests in music and physical exercise. Also Karon had a great sense of humor, an important quality in short supply in our current divided political world.
I will always remember her description of her first ‘date’ with her then soon to be husband, a mining engineer from Alaska then based in Kennicott, whose only mode of transport was an airplane. Visiting Utah where she worked, he picked up Karon in his plane. Karon, while gamely not saying anything at the time, said she was actually scared to death. Indeed, if you have ever flown in a small single engine aircraft over an urban area you can certainly understand the feeling.
Before moving permanently to Fairbanks Karon raised her children in various locations including Oklahoma City. She would often point out that with a mining Engineer Husband the canonical relocation ‘drill’ was to find a suitable house at which point her Husband would fly off to some mining location for several weeks at a time. Not an easy life. But then Karon was always one of those capable ‘frontier’ women unfazed by challenges. Life is an adventure; woe to those who don’t make lemonade from Lemons, especially if you want to live in Alaska.
Love of hiking and walking was a common interest I shared with Karon. One of her favorite events was the Midnight Sun 10K. When I moved more permanently back to Fairbanks in the Spring of 2025 I had an opportunity to walk the Midnight Sun with her. Unfortunately, although having Run Marathons and 10K’s in my earlier years, I was far from being in shape. As the race drew nearer and I shared some walks with Karon I found, including steps on a treadmill, that she was averaging 30K or more steps per day, a number way above my average. Nevertheless I decided to give it a try. After having a great time talking to Karon at the start, she said she would wait for me at the end. About six hours later I finally brought up the final few walkers into the gate. They were taking up the timing gate. Thankfully Karon, after easily doing the race in ~2 hours, waited for me. Being ~three years older than Karon at 82 years I had learned my lesson. Be careful about trying to keep up with a younger girlfriend!
Our joint interest in Music drew us to music events ranging from ‘Music and More’ Concerts at First Methodist Church, Symphony Concerts at Davis, Fairbanks Concert Association events, and Saturday morning piano music with Coffee in Ester in summer. The FCA events were particularly fun when we could make use of season tickets not used by her daughter Heather. I remember going to a delightful Irish themed band the Winter after we first met at Hering with prime front row seats.
Fortunately finding a suitable rental to ‘Winter Over’ in Fairbanks, Karon invited me over for Thanksgiving Dinner giving me the opportunity to get to know her super-capable daughter Heather and other family members. Shortly after that in December we did one of our last concerts together when Karon came to the Fall peace choir Concert where I was singing again for the first time in about five years. Since she hadn’t attended there before I was prepared to introduce her to some of the Unitarian ‘Peace Choir’ crowd. Silly me. While we were circulating I found that Karon knew more people there than me, many through her links with her Husband’s family (Strandberg).
Shortly after this concert Karon came down with a flu like affliction that could well have been a symptom of the cancer that would soon take her life. While keeping in touch by phone and text we weren’t able to do a family get together at Christmas. She recovered sufficiently after Christmas to resume Thursday evening dinners and music events. Our last music engagement was a Fairbanks Concert Association with front row seats to a Guitar concert. She was tired and indeed the next night flew by medivac to Anchorage accompanied by Heather. While I continued to talk some on the phone with her and see her at home upon her return she never really recovered. However even until the very end in Hospice she was responsive and present; more concerned that Visitors be treated well: Irrepressible Karon to the end.
As Karon has moved on to the afterlife, one has Iconic visions of her showing up at St Peter’s gate and castigating some angels for doing a sloppy job in Heaven. Presumably if the rest of us manage to make it there she will have things ship-shape when we arrive.
Of course, quite apart from the ‘Hereafter’, Karon’s mark on our corporeal world is lasting and indelible. She made, by her life, the world a much better place for all of us. Regardless of whether an afterlife congruent with Religious beliefs exists, Karon’s Life here on Earth was productive and uplifting for those of us who knew her. She will be remembered!
Karen keep walking your path in heaven, you were a blessing to all of us! Miss you my friend, Tanya
I will always remember you as a kind and sweet woman, who taught me that it is always a good time to go walk around miles and miles, no matter how tired, sad, or whatever happens, we are.
Thank you for your kindness and patience, when I was not good at English, you always tried to teach me.
I send my love, hugs and thoughts to all the family.
My love from Chile, to you
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