In-Person Memorial / Celebration

We are hosting an in-person memorial event to celebrate Karen’s life and legacy on July 24, 2021 at the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum from 1-5pm.

You can RSVP on the Facebook event page here.

Celebrating the life of Karen Mogard

Please join us to celebrate the life of our beloved mother, Karen Mogard.

We will be hosting an open-house style event in the Margot Shelters at the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum. Feel free to stop by anytime between 1-5pm.

You’re also free to explore the Arboretum grounds all day (8am-8pm). Entrance to the arboretum will be free for all of our guests.

ACTIVITIES

• ART STATION: Mom loved to create art, so we’ll have an art station for creating some of her crafts, using her (numerous) leftover art supplies.

• SILENT AUCTION: Bid on Karen’s remaining original artwork & crafts, or order prints of her work from our new Etsy shop.

• PHOTO WALL: Do you have photos of Karen you would like to share with the family? Share them on our photo wall!

• REMEMBRANCE: We are planning a few other activities and ways you can share your memories of her. Come prepared to share your stories!

• BENCH: We have purchased a memorial bench in the Sculpture Garden at the Arboretum. It should be in place in time for this event. Since Karen was cremated, this bench will be a wonderful place you can visit to remember her.

COVID SAFETY

As you can imagine, having lost both our mother and grandfather to COVID, this is a very sensitive issue for us. The health and safety of our family, and of our guests, is incredibly important. Most of our children cannot be vaccinated yet, and variants are constantly increasing their risk. There are also many other vulnerable people who cannot get vaccinated.

If you CHOOSE not to be vaccinated, we strongly urge you to consider how your choice endangers others. It is literally a life-or-death decision, maybe not for you, but for people like our mother, who lost her life from other people’s reckless behavior and careless choices.

Then, please consider how your attendance would make us feel. Our mom would be alive today if the vaccine had been available 6 months ago. If you truly want to honor her memory, PLEASE get vaccinated.

If you still choose to attend, without getting a vaccination, we will ask you to wear a mask while attending our event (especially indoors, but outdoors as well). If this request offends you, then it’s probably best you don’t attend. Our mother’s death is not a political disagreement, it is a health and safety issue that everyone should prioritize.

FOOD & BEVERAGE: For safety reasons, we will only offer a few, individually-wrapped food and beverage items for guests. The arboretum offers a restaurant and food truck if you wish to purchase a meal.