Karma Lee Horlacher Balling

Karma passed away quietly on April 21, 2022, at age 87 in the presence of her five children and their spouses.  Her death was the result of years of congestive heart failure.  Karma was born on January 18, 1935, in Logan, Utah to parents William Henry Horlacher and Nellie Dunford.  She had three older siblings (William, Donniel, and Kathleen) and four younger siblings (Charles, Sandra, Patricia, and Nellie Raye).  She spent most of her childhood years living in a house one block from the Logan temple.  Her father owned and operated Horlacher’s Fine Meats for 39 years.  Karma first met her future husband, Jack Balling, in the sixth grade at the Woodruff Elementary School.  We have a picture of their sixth-grade square dance team with four couples where Karma and her partner are right behind Jack and his partner.  Jack and Karma dated exclusively during their years at Logan High School where Karma was the senior class secretary and Jack was the star of the football and basketball teams.  They both attended Utah State College where Karma was active in the Chi Omega sorority and Jack studied Civil Engineering.  They married in the Logan Temple on June 10, 1954, when they were both 19.  While living in rented homes, their sons Rick and Scott were born.  In 1959, Jack and Karma bought their first home located on Springcreek Drive in Bountiful, Utah.  They would live in that home for the next 38 years where their children Dave, Paige, and Chris were born.  They developed lifelong friendships with many neighbors.  At the time of her death, Karma had 33 grandchildren and 72 great-grandchildren.  Karma established many traditions in her family including breakfast together each morning and supper together each evening.  She loaded up the family camper for vacations across the western states and Canada, and she loaded up the boat for trips to Lake Powell, Flaming Gorge, and Bear Lake.  In 1979, Jack and Karma built a cabin on the East side of Bear Lake, which was used by the family year-round for 40 years.

Karma loved to read, and for many years she met with her book club friends to discuss books.  Karma was an expert at knitting, crocheting, and quilting.  She made hand-knit socks, sweaters, and blankets, as well as exquisite temple bags and baby afghans right up until she died.  Karma became an accomplished painter.  Her paintings of landscapes, people, and flowers can be found throughout the homes of her posterity.  Karma loved to travel with her family to many countries from Israel to South America to Italy.  She made her 32^nd SCUBA dive when she was 61.  Karma has a strong testimony of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and served in many callings from Cub Scout Den mother to Relief Society President.  Karma and Jack served a mission at the Institute of Religion in Manchester, England where they were beloved by many of the young adults in that area.  Karma was a survivor of breast cancer, which required surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy.  To commemorate her final cancer treatment, Jack presented her with a Volkswagen Beetle with license plate “Phoebe”.  Karma’s kids and grandkids painted Pheobe as a multi-colored patchwork quilt under Karma’s direction.  Phoebe “lived” at the cabin at Bear Lake and became an icon as it was driven around the Bear Lake Valley.  Karma will be most remembered for the unconditional love that she extended to her family, friends, and virtually everyone that she came in contact with.  Her genuine interest and care for others came freely.  She frequently expressed gratitude for her blessings even when she faced hardship.  Her care for Jack as he went through a difficult period of diabetes and dementia at the end of his life was an example to all.  We miss her, but we are happy that the spirits of Karma and Jack have been reunited and are free from the physical disabilities that marked the end of their mortal lives.

Karma was preceded in death by her parents, her husband Jack, all of her siblings except Sandra and Nellie Raye, her daughter-in-law Cindee, and two of her granddaughters, Micahlie and Tiffani.  She is survived by 31 grandchildren, 72 great-grandchildren, and her five children: Rick (Diana) Balling – Murray, Scott (Angie) Balling – Centerville, Dave (Sandi) Balling – Kaysville, Paige (Mark) James – West Bountiful, and Chris (Sonya) Balling – Bountiful.

Funeral services will be held at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, April 30, 2022, at the Bountiful Park Ward Chapel, 990 North 100 West, Bountiful, Utah where a viewing will be held that morning from 9:00-10:15 a.m. prior to services. Interment- Bountiful City Cemetery.

A family luncheon will be held thereafter at the home of Paige and Mark James located at 1226 Milbridge Lane, West Bountiful.

Services will be streamed live on the Russon Mortuary & Crematory Facebook page and on this obituary page.  The live stream will begin about 10-15 minutes prior to the service and will be posted below.