Karen Lee Whitaker

Arden – Karen Lee Whitaker, 80, of Appalachian Blvd., died Friday, November 24, 2006, at the John F. Keever Hospice Solace Center. A native of Cleveland, Ohio, daughter of the late Robert Brooks and Katherine Otter Taylor, Karen was raised in Knoxville, Tennessee and graduated from high school at the age of 15. She received a degree in chemistry from Berea College at the age of 18 and also had time to be the Berea College Church organist. During World War II, Mrs. Whitaker worked on the Manhattan Project and from 1945 until 1960, worked for Standard Oil Co. of Ohio and then the American Petroleum Institute in computer information retrieval. She moved to South Pasadena, California in 1963 and worked in Research and Development at the University of Southern California Ear, Nose and Throat Dept. Laboratory. Over the years, Mrs. Whitaker had been involved with the Cub Scouts, the Girl Scouts, the South Pasadena PTA and the Sierra Club. She was a member of the First Presbyterian Church of Asheville, singing in the Adult Choir and as a Bell Ringer. Her love of classical music led her to be active with the Asheville Symphony Guild. Mrs. Whitaker was a strong supporter of the Republican Party and was active with the Republican Women’s Club of Buncombe County. She loved being outdoors, hiking and camping. Devoted to her family, Mrs. Whitaker is survived by her husband of 62 years, Clay Westerfield Whitaker, a retired Ear, Nose and Throat Physician; four children, Stephen Whitaker, and his wife Teri, of Champaign, Illinois, David Whitaker, and his wife Carol, of Sealy, Texas, Katherine Whitaker of Asheville and Congresswoman Mary Bono of Palm Springs, California. She also is survived by eight grandchildren, Laura Kenney, and her husband Doug, Daniel and Christopher Whitaker, Cameron and Ian Whitaker, Teresa Shuford and Chesare and Chianna Bono; and one great grandson, Thomas Kenney. Private family services will be held. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the John F. Keever Hospice Solace Center, P.O. Box 25338, Asheville, NC 28813.