MARENGO - James, Karen Gayl, passed away at her home in Marengo, IN, on the evening of Monday, May 20, 2013. Karen was perhaps best known as the Head Children's Librarian for the Louisville Free Public Library system, for whom she worked for many years until her retirement. At the time she retired, she was the Head of Collection Development. The Library community, unwilling to let her leave, asked her to work with the Library Foundation for whom she wrote grants. During her career, she occasionally taught classes in Children's Literature at Spalding University, as well as, at the University of Louisville. A member of the American Library Association and the Kentucky Library Association, she was a frequent presenter at conferences. She also twice served as a judge for the Caldecott and Newbery Book Awards, and she wrote book reviews for Library Journal. During her work with children she demonstrated her talents as a fine puppeteer, and as a masterly story teller. She was an inexhaustible reader, and she was a member of an on-going book discussion group for 24 years. Trained in Art History and Painting in her early years in college, she was a fine artist in oils and she created beautiful collages. She was also a founding member and a board member of the Lost River Market and Deli, a food cooperative, which is located in Paoli, IN. Karen is survived by her husband, Timothy James Hellner, with whom she shared a truly remarkable companionship for 37 years. She lived with her spouse and her beloved cats on their rural acreage, surrounded by trees, in a home that they built themselves. She was a wonderfully attractive, refined and intelligent person who invariably impressed all who knew her. She was deeply admired by many, friends and acquaintances, alike. It is trivial to say that she will be greatly missed. Although raised as a Presbyterian, a Mass will be said for her at the Abbey of Gethsemani in Bardstown, KY. A celebration of Karen's life will be held at a later date.