Karen Mulkern, 69, passed away peacefully at home on Saturday, February 14, 2026, after a difficult battle with cancer. Karen was born on September 22nd, 1956, the daughter of the late Charles W. Gillett and Joyce Arsenault. She grew up in Portland and graduated from Portland High School with the class of 1974. On September 7th, 1974, Karen married the love of her life, Frank Mulkern. They began their life in South Portland where they built their family before relocating to Manchester, NH in 1995. "Mammy" was the heartbeat of her family, a nurturer by nature, mother of 4 daughters, grandmother of 5 and a second mom to countless others throughout the years. As a sports mom turned grandma she endured many late night practices, long car rides, borderline abusive early competition mornings, freezing or sweltering double headers at the ball field but always beamed with pride and was there to support from the front row. After retiring from her career as a paraprofessional Karen enjoyed spending her days caring for her grandchildren, working out with her gym girls and going out dancing with Frank and their friends. She loved music, the beach, warm weather and everything pink. You could always count on Mammy to be in the kitchen, she loved through her cooking and would whip up your favorite anytime. From her lasagna, spaghetti and meatballs to scrambled eggs, ramen noodles or a classic peanut butter sandwich spread with love. A few of her favorite things to do were read and sing to her grandbabies or binge a good show with Frank and her daughters. Karen was predeceased by a daughter, Teresa Mulkern, a sister, Lorraine Arsenault, a brother, Roger Williams. She is survived by her husband of 52 years, Frank Mulkern, 3 daughters, Jen Scheer and her husband Kevin Scheer, Tricia Mulkern, Michelle Gonzales and her husband Michael Gonzales, a brother Frederick Arsenault and his partner Nicole Levesque. Along with her 5 grandchildren, Jacob and Brooke Scheer and Mica, Liberty and Theo Gonzales. A memorial service will be held on Wednesday, March 4th, 5-7PM at J. N. Boufford & Sons on 110 Bridge St. Manchester, NH with a spring burial in Calvary Cemetery, Broadway, South Portland, ME. To view Karen’s memorial page please visit https://www.bouffordfuneralhome.com/Obituaries.html. In lieu of flowers, please donate in honor & memorial of Karen to the American Cancer Society at https://www.cancer.org/