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Risk, Karen G. Apr 6, 1948 - May 19, 2016 Retired after 34 years as Executive Director of Nebraska Organ Recovery System. Preceded in death by parents, Henry and Gertrude (Leinen) Huebert; brother, Daman (1940); sister, Verda Mae (1948); one nephew and one grandnephew. Survived by loving husband, Robert; brothers: Gerald (Betty) of Portsmouth, IA, Dallan (Sharon) of Omaha, and Neil (Cherylene) of Panama, IA; numerous nieces and nephews. The family will receive friends Monday, May 23rd, from 6pm to 8pm at the Mortuary. SERVICES Tuesday, May 24th at 11am at the Mortuary. Interment, Fort Calhoun Cemetery. Memorials to Alzheimer's Association. HEAFEY-HOFFMANN-DWORAK-CUTLER 5108 F St., 68117 402-391-3900 www.heafeyheafey.com

Karen Risk, 68, led Nebraska Organ Recovery System for 34 years

• By Reece Ristau / World-Herald staff writer May 23, 2016

• In 1977 Karen Risk helped found the Nebraska Organ Recovery System, which has since helped countless people receive the organs they desperately needed.

During her 34 years as executive director of the system, which is the primary coordinator for organ donation in Nebraska and Pottawattamie County, Iowa, Risk helped build a legacy that continues today.

Risk died Thursday from complications related to cancer and Alzheimer’s. She was 68. She had retired four years ago from the organ recovery system after being diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer’s disease.

Risk’s family saw her leadership abilities shine in her personal life the same way they did in her professional life. Sharon Huebert, Risk’s sister-in-law, said Risk has been the go-to leader since they first met in school.

“Karen was an extremely efficient person and a good leader,” Huebert said.

The two first met while training to become licensed practical nurses in Carroll, Iowa. In the apartment they shared with a third friend, Risk became the “mom” of the apartment.

“She set up chores and came up with grocery lists and what we were going to make,” Huebert said.

Risk was originally from Panama, Iowa. After completing their nursing training in Carroll, Risk and Huebert worked at Bergan Mercy Medical Center in Omaha. That’s where Risk would eventually introduce Huebert to her brother, and their friendship strengthened when they became “sisters” by Huebert’s marriage to Risk’s brother.

Risk and her husband, Robert, were nearly inseparable, Huebert said. The couple raised and trained black Labrador retrievers, which they would take around the country to dog competitions. They owned a van that they turned into a doggy mobile, with kennels in the back.

“Those were their kids,” Huebert said.

At competitions, if her husband was judging or running one of their dogs, Risk would sit back in her lawn chair, working on a craft. She loved to embroider and was also a painter and pianist.

In addition to her husband, Risk is survived by her brothers, Gerald, Dallan and Neil. The family will receive friends today from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Korisko-Larkin-Staskiewicz mortuary. The funeral will also be held there, on Tuesday at 11 a.m. The interment will be at Fort Calhoun Cemetery.

Omaha World Herald 24 May 2016

Risk, Karen G. Apr 6, 1948 - May 19, 2016 SERVICES Tuesday, May 24th at 11am at the Mortuary. Interment, Fort Calhoun Cemetery. HEAFEY-HOFFMANN-DWORAK-CUTLER 5108 F St., 68117 402-391-3900 www.heafeyheafey.com