Karen Rita Inman (Oldham)

Karen Rita Inman, of Boonville, IN, passed away on Thursday, February 9th, 2023. She was 77 years old and resided in the Kansas City Metropolitan area for the past five years to be closer to her children and their respective families. Karen grew up in Boonville and traveled with her first husband by way of the Air Force, living in Texas, Japan, Maryland, and Massachusetts, and then came back to her hometown to raise her family near her mother.
Karen was born on July 19th, 1945, in Jasper, Indiana to Louis J. and Vivian (Johnson) Oldham. She attended the University of Southern Indiana and earned her Associates Degree in business and her Bachelor of Science in psychology. Although she liked to keep to herself, she was the heartbeat for her family, keeping everyone connected with daily phone calls of advice, stories, and dry wit. She had the incredible ability of bringing everyone together through her hospitality and homecooked meals. She was unofficially crowned the ‘queen of casseroles’, and her famous comfort food dishes would appear at every family gathering. She loved hosting for the holidays in Boonville and would go above and beyond to turn her home into a magical marvel, especially at Christmas time. Her décor was impressive, her Christmas tree was towering, and her gift giving was admirable. Each year, Karen would search for, and choose with intention, custom-made ornaments to give as gifts to those on her list. She loved cardinals, holly trees, and winter scenes, which she could easily enjoy each holiday season from the comfort of her own home. Her yard was impressively landscaped complete with a koi and goldfish pond, numerous flower beds, a hummingbird garden, a swing, and even a treehouse for the grandkids. In the springtime, her yard would come to life attracting all sorts of critters, birds, and insects. Karen truly knew how to make a house a home and how to create memories that would last for generations to come.
Karen is preceded in death by her parents, Louis J. and Vivian (Johnson) Oldham, her brother Phil Oldham, and her fur-baby, Cassie the cat. She is survived by her children Tim Lanigan, Leslie Lanigan, and Tiffany Lanigan; her grandchildren Lucas Lanigan, Logan Lanigan, Vivianna Drosos, and Sophia Drosos, and her beloved fur-baby Meisha the cat.