Karla Kay Schlabach

On Saturday, August 23, 2025, Karla Kay Schlabach (née Franke) of Chappell Hill, Texas, passed away at the age of 71, after a brief battle with throat cancer. At the time of passing, she was with her husband and best friend of 48 years, Mike, and had recently spent time with both her beloved sons, Michael and Matthew.

Karla was born to Anna and Carl Franke on August 8, 1954, in Galveston, Texas. She graduated in 1972 from Beaumont High School as a celebrated “Pine Burr Beauty” and a member of the Royal Purple Drill Team. She attended two years of nursing school at Lamar University before moving back to Galveston to receive her bachelor’s degree in nursing in 1976 from The University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB), where she met the love of her life in a scene worthy of a romantic comedy.

Karla’s roommates planned to sabotage their own car in order to garner the assistance (and attention) of some handsome young med students. Karla wasn’t involved in the scheme, but she got Mike’s attention anyway. She liked that he was quiet; he liked that she wasn’t. They were the perfect complement to one another. Mike and Karla married in Beaumont on April 23, 1977, and for half a century, they were faithful life partners, moving from Galveston to Temple to Bryan-College Station to Kerrville and finally to Chappell Hill together, where Karla spent her remaining thirteen years in a home she truly loved.

Karla first worked as a neonatal intensive care nurse and then as a dialysis nurse at John Sealy Hospital in Galveston. In later years, she worked in Mike’s practice, helping out with administrative needs. She was a member of the Junior League in Temple and of the Hill Country Quilt Guild in Kerrville and the Brazos Bluebonnet Quilt Guild in Bryan.

Karla embraced, above all things, creativity. Whether it was constructing heirloom quilts, producing gorgeous flower arrangements, sewing prize-winning Halloween costumes for her children, building games and crafts for her grandkids, upcycling bargain items into thoughtful gifts, or learning new skills late in life like acrylic paint pouring, she loved using her hands to make beautiful things, and to give those beautiful things to the people who mattered most to her.

She was a marvelous cook, often expanding her knowledge by watching cooking shows and reading cookbooks, and she imparted her talent in the kitchen to both her sons. She was active until the end, starting most of her mornings at sunrise to walk eight miles in the park with her friends, who became a special part of her day, every day.

She had a dry and offbeat sense of humor, and a talent for remembering quirky details that she would bring up at the funniest possible time. In recent years, she and Mike became frequent world travelers, visiting places like Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Italy and Croatia with the Traveling Aggies.

Karla is survived by her husband, Dr. Michael Ray Schlabach, and her sons and daughters-in-law Michael and Kelly in Belmont, Massachusetts, and Matthew and Meredith in Unterneukirchen, Bavaria. She is also survived by her much-loved grandchildren, Audrey and Benjamin, as well as her sister Christine Franke, sister-in-law Sheryl Durfey (husband Dennis), and nieces Tracy Hruby, Kenzie Magill (husband Wes), and Sara Durfey. Karla was both born into and married into big, close-knit families, and she leaves behind many cousins and in-laws who adored her.

She was predeceased in death by her parents Carl and Anna Franke, father-in-law Roy Schlabach and mother-in-law Verline Schlabach, and her dear Aunt Helen, who meant the world to her. Visiting Aunt Helen was one of the most treasured parts of Karla’s childhood, and she loved recounting those stories decades later.

A memorial service will be held at 3pm on Thursday, August 28, at Memorial Oaks Chapel, 1306 West Main Street in Brenham, Texas, 979.836.4564.

The family would like to thank the doctors and nurses at Baylor Scott & White for their kind and attentive care of Karla over the past few months. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in the name of Karla Schlabach to Animal Friends of Washington County (3901 TX-36, Brenham, TX 77833, 979.277.0400) or Baylor Scott & White Foundation-Brenham (700 Scott & White Drive, College Station, TX 77845, 979.207.4074).

Karla was creative. She was generous. She was curious. And she loved her friends and family with everything she had. The best way to honor her is to cultivate those essential qualities in your own life, and with your own loved ones.