Mary Karen Abildskov
1958 ~ 2024
Mary Karen Abildskov
February 9, 1958-June 4, 2024
Born in Syracuse, New York, Mary Karen Abildskov, the third of four children, moved with her family to Salt Lake City, Utah, at age ten. After graduating from Highland High School, she attended Utah State University in Logan, Utah, to study something she loved: dance. Soon after, she began a long and successful career in retail and financial management that took her to Portland, Oregon; Los Angeles, California; Phoenix, Arizona; and back to Salt Lake City, working for such companies as Capezio, The Limited, Brookstone, Talbots, and, for many years, the legendary department store I. Magnin & Co. She was preceded in death by her sister, Becky Ann Houck and her parents, J.A. Abildskov and Mary Helen McKell Abildskov, whom she cared for in their later years. Her body is buried in a family plot at Larkin Sunset Lawn. She is survived by family and friends who will miss her integrity, intelligence, generosity, and humor. In honor of her memory, please consider donating to an organization she quietly supported: Best Friends Animal Society of Utah (bestfriends.org).