Karen Bryn Boyd, 77, of Loganville, Georgia, passed away while battling breast cancer on August 11, 2023.

Karen was born 1945 to Harold and Wilda Boyd in Steubenville, Ohio. The oldest of three siblings, Karen is survived by her sister Jill but was preceded in death by their younger sister, Polly. Karen and her former spouse, Daniel DeNicola of Steubenville, Ohio, had two sons (Dylan and Lane) and a daughter (Angela). She is also survived by three grandchildren (Serena, Matthew, and Jackson), whom she adored.

Though she often spoke fondly of her childhood on a farm in rural Ohio, Karen spent the entirety of her adult life outside that state, moving up and down the east coast for family, school, or work, from Massachusetts and New York to Kentucky to Georgia and Florida.

After graduating from Wintersville High School in 1963 she studied at Ohio University until 1966, ultimately earning her Bachelor of Arts "with High Distinction" in English from Rollins College in 1978. She later returned to school for graduate training, earning a Master of Theological Studies from Emory University in 1987 and a doctorate in Educational Psychology from Georgia State University in 2001.

Apart from her many years as a student she was also employed in various roles at multiple academic institutions, in particular serving as the Coordinator of Institutional Effectiveness & Research at West Kentucky Community & Technical College from 2005 to 2015. While there she contributed to their selection (in 2011, 2013, and again in 2015) as one of the top ten finalists for the coveted Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence. Even after retiring to the Atlanta metro area she continued to teach online courses in Religion for West Kentucky right up into her final years.

Karen's patience, pragmatism, and midwestern sensibilities were complemented by a keen wit, a rich creativity, and a love of mysticism and spectacle. The artistic talents that yielded a string of photographs, lithographs, and oil paintings in the 70s and 80s would find their new home in quilting and embroidery in the 21st century. She was an indomitable Scrabble player, a Civilization-style game addict, a dabbler in Tarot and an inveterate X-Files fan. Despite having her descendants spread across multiple states she always kept a nurturing eye on their goings-on and her presence will be sorely missed.

Send to someone

Share this obituary with others

https://everloved.com/life-of/karen-boyd/obituary/

Copy