Karen King

I am an Olympia High Graduate. I attended Green River and Centralia Community College, and trained with National & International Childbirth Education Association. I did early work as a WA State Employee with DMV, DSHS, WSP, and had a brief few years of some fun being an Assistant Manager of a Womens’s Clothing Boutique. I bowed out of work to raise 4 amazing daughters with my husband Doug.

In the midst of being a mother/homemaker I decided on the passion of teaching and embarked on classes and training to become a Certified Childbirth Educator and continue to work as Parent Family Health Educator at Providence Health Systems and simultaneously became a Certified BLS and First Aid Instructor/Trainer, as well as conducting home visitation doing Parent Family Education for Providence Home Service in Thurston, Mason, & Lewis Counties also teaching at Prov. St. Peter and Centralia Hospitals. After being laid off from Providence Sound Home Services in 2009 I followed my long desire to become a Master Gardener and voila a position opened up in Food $ense and I now get to ignite my love of teaching about, eating, preparing and growing Healthy Foods to those who live in my community!

Initially, I was mostly involved with teaching students at Hood Canal, Pioneer Schools and Squaxin Tribal and filling in as needed. Later my work evolved in helping implement adult education/doing education presentations for Saint’s Pantry Food Bank, DSHS Community Service Office and Behavior Health Resources. After training for Eating Smart Be Active, I was involved in conducting the first classes and ongoing. And this fall, Adult education support primarily for elderly at our local Fred Meyer on Senior Tuesday.

I love being active in planting, growing, harvesting and preserving my own food , as well as outdoor activities like kayaking, camping, I enjoy sewing, reading, cooking. I engage in many volunteer activities in my community and church. It is a great joy to have most of my family near and of greatest delight 3 of my 4 grandchildren (keep ‘em coming)!