Obituary: Karen A. Rodia, 65, Of Stratford

STRATFORD, CT — (From Adzima Funeral Home): Karen (Schuler) Rodia, 65, beloved wife, mother, Mimi, and daughter, of Stratford, passed away suddenly and unexpectedly on November 5, 2023. She was the beloved wife of Thomas R. Rodia for 45 years.

She was born on March 18, 1958, in Bridgeport, the daughter of Rose (Aronson) and the late Donald Schuler, Sr.

Karen was a lifelong resident of Stratford. Her first job was working at her father’s gas station in Paradise Green. When working at the movie theater in Stratford Center, she met her future husband, who was working his beat there as a Stratford police officer.

After she graduated from Bunnell High School in 1976, she attended Bullard-Havens Technical School in Bridgeport to become a licensed practical nurse. She went on to work at convalescence homes, a cardiology practice, and a pediatric practice, eventually finishing the last 20 years of her career at the medical practice of the late Dr. Thomas Brunoski.

Karen had a heart of gold, helping anybody and everybody in any way she could. She dedicated her time to volunteering with many worthy organizations including Wilcoxson School PTA, Bunnell High School band parents, Rainbow Girls, the Order of the Eastern Star, Stratford Conservation Open Space Committee, Stratford Conservation Commission, and Stratford Greenway. She was elected to the Stratford Board of Education and proudly served 2017–2021.

After she finished her term, she continued to serve on the Curriculum Committee. She proudly became a Justice of the Peace in 2023. Most recently she could be found volunteering at the Stratford Animal Rescue Society in memory of her late cherished dog Mia.

In Karen’s world, strangers were simply friends she hadn’t made yet. She loved dancing to her “boys” (The Beach Boys) and would rather be barefoot, even in the winter. She had an affinity for knitting and loved making her famous Mimi blankets, which bring comfort to the over 300 people who have them. That passion went beyond blankets, as she wove her way into the lives of everyone she met.

Holidays and family get-togethers were Karen’s thing. Nothing made her happier than chaos in her living room, searching for “treasure,” hiding Christmas gifts, hunting for the perfect pumpkins and Christmas trees, watching people open their presents, signed books from her favorite authors, challenging gravity in many time zones, and supporting her family in every way possible.

In addition to her husband and mother, she is survived by her son Nicholas (Justyna), daughters Shannon Hurley (Douglas), April Winkowski (Konrad), and Jennifer King (Beverd), grandchildren Thomas, Jacob, Bella, Savannah, and baby Nathan (on the way) Rodia, Gregory Hurley, and Aiden and Emmy Winkowski, brother Donald Schuler, Jr. (Patty), in-laws Linda Dobrydney, Susan Melita (Ted), Diane Carfo (Marc), Eileen Rotunno (James), John Rodia (Luisa), Patti Jean Cavallaro (Keith), Lori Redding (Billy), and many nieces, nephews, and cousins, and will be dearly missed by all.

“God only knows” why she left us so early. We love you to the moon and back.

Friends may visit with Karen’s family on Thursday, November 9, 2023, from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the Adzima Funeral Home 50 Paradise Green Place, Stratford. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated on Friday, November 10, 2023, at 10 a.m. meeting directly at St. Mark Church 500 Wigwam Lane, Stratford. Interment will follow in St. Mary’s Cemetery, Milford, Connecticut

The family requests if anyone would like to make a donation in her memory, please make donations to Stratford Animal Rescue Society (STARS).

For more information and to leave online condolences, visit Adzima Funeral Home here.