Karen A. (Molloy) Gilbert, age 86 of Boothbay, Maine, died peacefully on Oct. 15, 2025, after a long illness. 

She was born in Milford, Massachusetts on July 31, 1939, daughter of the late Joseph A. Molloy and Helen (Danis) DeForitis. She was raised in Franklin, Massachusetts, graduating from Franklin High School Class of 1957. She attended Katherine Gibbs School in Providence, Rhode Island, and worked for several years in Boston.  

Karen married Wayne Gilbert in 1960 and raised four children while moving numerous times during Wayne’s career with the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) including Detroit, Oklahoma City, Washington, D.C. (three times), Albany, New York, Pittsburg and Philadelphia. She worked for Hertz Corporation in in Oklahoma City and the Fairfax County School District in Virgina.  

She was a wonderful mother raising her children through numerous relocations. They moved to Langhorne, Pennsylvania after Wayne’s retirement from the FBI in 1993. They moved to a new home in Boothbay on the Midcoast of Maine after Wayne retired from Johnson and Johnson in 2003.  

She was active in the Boothbay Region Garden Club and the St. Andrews Auxiliary Thrift Shop for many years. She was an avid Red Sox and Patriots fan.  

She particularly enjoyed visits with her six grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren.  

Karen is survived by her husband, Wayne and four children, Michael of Boothbay Harbor, Stephen and his wife of Warrenton, Virginia, Sharon of Boothbay, and Wayne Owen of Boothbay. She is also survived by her siblings, Susan Leary and her husband Joe and Joanne Mercer and husband Tom of Franklin, Massachusetts; and Kevin Molloy of Turners Falls, Massachusetts.  

She wanted to acknowledge the excellent care she received from Beacon Hospice. 

At the family’s request, there will be no memorial service. In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made to the Midcoast Humane Society or the charity of your choice.  

Hall’s of Boothbay has care of the arrangements. To extend online condolences, please visit hallfuneralhomes.com