Some stories have spectacular beginnings and others have the grandest of finishes. This is a story that was brimming with beauty throughout every page. Karen (Armstrong) Corbitt's story began in Memphis, TN where she joined the tales of parents, Betty and Charlie Armstrong, and a loving big brother, Danny Armstrong. She shared her joy and love with neighbors and friends and extended family, especially cousins, Vicki and Cindy, in the Northeast Memphis area. She would, with engaging clarity and confidence, tell many of the ways a decision as a young lady to choose Jesus as her Savior and Lord, changed her life forever. Countless moments in her life were spent scouring her Bible and worshipping and learning with other Christians to grow more in her understanding and love for Jesus. He rescued her from sin that had kept her from the greatest of connections with God by living a perfect life himself, dying on a cross, and coming alive again to offer her abundant life and purpose in every day. Some of those days were fraught with joy and others with sorrow and her heart was filled with gratitude for the peace this relationship with God infused into every page of her story. She loved children and spent many hours as a young woman teaching Sunday School at Thrifthaven Baptist Church. The church families of a small country church in Eudora, Broadway Baptist Church and Christ Presbyterian Church in Mississippi and Faith Covenant Church in Kalispell, MT were each graced, as well, by her intentionality and prayerful presence. Her story was often set to music as she joined choirs at church and Midsouth Bible College and lived most days with a "song on her heart". Karen was thrilled when the story God was writing in her life took a marvelous turn to include an incredible husband, lover, hero, and friend in Amos Lawrence Corbitt, Jr. Their narrative included raising children Scott "Scotty" Corbitt, Emily "Emmy" (Corbitt) Ort, and David "Dave" Corbitt, caring for aging relatives, celebrating and playing with grandchildren, spending retirement years gallivanting about the country in a motor home, researching geneologies, taking on the roles of Santa and Mrs Claus, and even journeying the difficult road of cancer together before this wonderful chapter ended with Lawrence's death in 2009. She continued to spend her own chapters, still being written, by sharing God's love through her caring touch, kind and wise words (both spoken and written), breathtaking smile and compassionate tears. She loved the opportunities she had to respond to the name, Gran. Her creativity in connecting with each of her grandkids made their own stories drip with love, laughter, and a deep sense of being treasured. Forrest Alfonso, Dakota Corbitt, Olivia Porter, Keith (& Karina), Jacob, Orion, Kara, Simon, Ian and Grace Ort all found delight in calling her Gran! A big setting change in her tale came in 2019 when Karen packed up and ventured away from the many friends and neighbors and family in the Memphis/ NW Mississippi area and purchased a home in Montana where she lived right along the walk to school of her grandchildren there and their parents, Jeff and Emmy (Corbitt) Ort. Here, she quickly made friends and welcomed neighbors and prayed for and communicated with those near and far, constantly. Her labors of love in the kitchen, mushing peanut butter balls, chopping cucumbers for pickles, frying okra, whipping up chocolate pies, . . . will continue to grace kitchens from MT to VA, where Jennifer Porter (wife of Dave Corbitt) raises skilled chef hands to keep us all remembering the tricks of the trade of the share and care type southern cook.

On October 14th, 2022, Karen Elizabeth (Armstrong) Corbitt's chronicles on this earth were completed. Awaiting her as she began her forever heavenly story, were her mother and father, husband, and grandbabies who met Jesus before meeting family. Karen (Gran) leaves brother, Danny Armstrong (wife, Lyn and their daughters Brandi & April and families), sons, Scott Corbitt (fiancé, Kim Long and kids) and Dave Corbitt (wife, Jennifer Porter and kids, Dakota Corbitt and Olivia Porter), daughter, Emmy Ort (husband, Jeff Ort and kids, Keith (and wife, Karina), Jacob, Orion, Kara, Simon, Ian and Grace), many cousins and extended family and friends, all continuing their own earthbound stories. Although her

death was a sudden and unexpected twist to those of us who loved every part of her beautiful story, here, we recognize that the delightful experience of heaven and nearness to Jesus for which she longed, is now her eternal reality. A service will be held to praise God for the story He wrote in Karen's life on November 4th at Christ Presbyterian Church, Olive Branch, MS. Viewing will be held at 11am and the service will begin at 12pm. Karen had organized calendars, crammed with notes of the special occasions or difficulties being faced in the stories of others, and boxes of cards and rolls of stamps, at the ready. She rarely missed a time when someone in her sphere of influence could use an encouraging word and used letters to remind them that they were deeply valued. In honor of the ways she connected and cared for so many in this way and in lieu of flowers (which always made her sneeze), please consider making time to write a note of encouragement to someone on your heart and carry on the beauty of her story through this practice.