SWEET HOME – Karin Darwood, 59, of Sweet Home, Ore., passed away very peacefully on Jan. 28, 2010, at home, surrounded by her family, after a very long struggle with multiple sclerosis and cancer. She was born April 7, 1950, in Stuttgart, Germany to Oswald Carl and Luise (Schmidt) Steiner.

In 1953 she immigrated to the United States with her parents. She became a U.S. citizen in 1960. In 1965 the family moved to Ocean Park, where she graduated from Ilwaco High School. She married her husband, Dan Darwood on Dec. 28, 1968. They settled in Sweet Home where they raised four children.

Her joys in life were her Christian faith and her family. She found hope and strength through her faith in Jesus Christ and focused on sharing that love with others in every way possible. She will always be remembered as a dedicated wife, mother, and grandmother, and the joyful and smiling lady no matter how hard things became with health struggles. She treasured time spent with her 14 grandchildren and extended family. Her home was a frequent destination of fun-filled gatherings.

Survivors include her husband, Dan Darwood of Sweet Home; a son and daughter-in-law, Josh and Brandy Darwood of Sweet Home; daughters and sons-in-laws, Heidi and Doug Durrett of Lebanon, Ore., Heather and Robert Leever of Lebanon, Ore., and Hollie and Jeremy Grammon of Roseburg, Ore.; grandsons: Preston Darwood, Emmett Darwood, Marshall Darwood, Kyler Grammon, Jonathan Leever and Andrew Leever; granddaughters: Taylor Darwood, Melody Durrett, Annalise Durrett, Emmaline Durrett, Hannah Grammon, Kaitlyn Grammon, Madelyn Leever and Jackie Stutzman; and one sister Betty Palmrose of Clatskanie, Ore. She was preceded in death by her mother in 2004 and her father in 2009.

A memorial service will be held at 10:30 a.m., on Saturday, Feb. 20 at The River Center in Lebanon. Donations can be made to the Lebanon Pregnancy Alternatives Center. Sweet Home Funeral Chapel is handling the arrangements. www.sweethomefuneral.com