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A Few Clouds Long Beach mourns the loss of Karen Sofield
Former school board president remembered as 'a role model to generations'
A day before her death, Long Beach resident Karen Sofield brought her family together for a Thanksgiving group photo. With six children and 20 grandchildren, getting them in one place could often be a challenge, but this year, her request for everyone to be together took on added significance.
“She knew she was very sick and she wanted to know that we were there for one another,” said her daughter, Mary Conway. “So, that Friday after Thanksgiving, we were all at our family home — with football in the yard and babies on her lap, she was happy and holding my father’s hand. She knew it would be easier for us to be together, she was taking care of us until the end.”
Sofield, a prominent member of the community and former Long Beach Board of Education president who many say left an indelible mark on their lives, passed away on Nov. 28 after a “herculean” battle with cancer, and just days before her 71st birthday.
Hundreds attended her funeral at St. Ignatius Martyr Church last week, where she was remembered as a loving wife, mother, grandmother, friend and mentor who many went to for advice and direction.
“My mother is a force of nature, and her sphere of influence is remarkable,” her son, Andy, said in his eulogy. “This is evident from the outpouring of love and support she and our family experienced throughout her life, and in particular during the past 12 years during her heroic and herculean battle with cancer.”
Sofield is survived by her husband, Thomas, the former Long Beach police commissioner, and her six children: Thomas Jr., the former City Council president, and his wife, Jeanine; Gregory and his wife, Johanna; Richard and his wife, Alice; Mary and her husband, Jeffrey; Andrew and his husband, Andrew; and William and his wife, Erin. She is also survived by her grandchildren and sisters Kristin Kennedy and Kathleen Ross.
Sofield was born Karen Marie Kennedy on Dec. 2, 1944, in Rockville Centre, one of five children. She attended the former St. Agnes High School, where she met her husband, a third-generation Long Beach resident, and the two quickly became high school sweethearts.
