Karen has practiced at the Berkeley Zen Center since 1976. In addition, from 1978 to 1993 she studied Tibetan Buddhism with Choygam Trungpa Rinpoche and Vipassana meditation with Joseph Goldstein and Jack Kornfield. She received Lay Ordination at BZC in 1996, was Shuso in 2006, and received Lay Entrustment from Sojun Roshi in 2010. During her nearly 44 years at BZC she has held many practice positions, including Sesshin Director, Tenzo, and Librarian. She currently leads a dharma study group and teaches Dharma in prisons and libraries. She worked for many years at the San Francisco Public Library, where she was Program Manager of the James C. Hormel LGBT Center. She lives with her wife Nancy and and cat Bella in Oakland.