Karen Hubbard advocated for a public ice rink in St. Mary’s Point after she witnessed her husband’s Jeep break through the ice of the St. Croix River.

It was 1966, and Stan Hubbard was clearing an ice rink for neighborhood children when his Jeep began to sink. Hubbard escaped through an open window – he couldn’t open the door because it was already covered in ice – and crawled to the shore on his stomach. “She was a little mad and scared,” he said. “She didn’t like it at all. She didn’t like a lot of the things I did.”

This incident prompted Karen Hubbard to push for the construction of the Lower St. Croix Valley Youth Center, which opened in 1968. The ice arena, located near the Hubbards’ home on the St. Croix River, remains open to area skaters, hockey players and curlers.

Karen Hubbard, longtime board member of Hubbard Broadcasting, died on August 12 at Regions Hospital in St. Paul from complications of a stroke. She was 87 years old.

Former Governor Wendell Anderson appointed Karen Hubbard to the first Minnesota-Wisconsin Borderlands Commission, where she helped shape policy for the St. Croix River after it was declared a National Wild and Scenic Waterway. The commission played a key role in the successful inclusion of the Lower St. Croix River in the National Scenic Riverways system in 1972.

It was natural for Karen Hubbard to work to protect the St. Croix River, Stan Hubbard said. “She lived along the St. Croix River and wanted to help keep the river healthy,” he said.

The Hubbards loved boating on the St. Croix, and Karen Hubbard’s “goal was always to make sure people could enjoy the river and have fun on it,” said Stanley E. Hubbard, the couple’s eldest son. “It was important to her that the recreational aspects of the St. Croix River, as well as its beauty, were always protected. It was her home. It was where she raised her family.”

Born and raised in St. Paul

Karen Holmen was born and raised in St. Paul. She graduated from Central High School in 1954 and attended Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter, where she earned a degree in education with a special interest in art and English in 1958.

After graduating from Gustavus, Karen taught art and English at Fairview Junior High School in Roseville.

Stan Hubbard said he first saw Karen Holmen, then a senior at Gustavus, at a party at her best friend’s house in St. Paul. He said he immediately turned to her friend Mary Jean Villaume and asked, “Who is that?” “She said, ‘Don’t bother. She’s not going to go out with you. She has a boyfriend,'” he said.

Stan Hubbard said he waited until Karen Holmen graduated from Gustavus before calling her. Their first date was at River’s Edge Supper Club in Somerset, Wisconsin.

“The first time I looked into her eyes, I knew there was something there,” he said. “She was completely honest and sincere. She told you exactly what she thought, but she was kind. She treated people fairly and honestly, and she was a hard worker. She never shied away from doing hard work. And if it meant getting her hands dirty, it didn’t matter. She did it. … We were as close as two peas in a pod from the first time we dated.”

They were married on June 13, 1959, at Gloria Dei Lutheran Church in St. Paul. Karen Hubbard’s grandfather had been a pastor at the church and assisted with the ceremony, Stan Hubbard said. “I took her on a honeymoon on a small boat on Lake Michigan and she got seasick,” he said. “She didn’t like that.”

The couple lived in Lakeland before moving into the summer house of Stan Hubbard’s parents in St. Mary’s Point and making it their year-round home; his parents had moved out after the St. Croix River flooded in 1965.

“A fulfilled and wonderful life”

The Hubbards had five children over the course of eight years: Kari, Stan, Ginny, Rob and Julia.

“Our house was always busy and she welcomed everyone,” said Stanley E. Hubbard. “We had a big garden, the river, the beach. We all hung out there. The cookie jar and freezer were always full because there were always lots of kids who needed snacks. That was always important. We were lucky.”

Karen Hubbard served as chairwoman of many boards, including the Minnesota Orchestra and the Children’s Home Society, and was a long-time member of the St. Paul Garden Club.

“She had a full and wonderful life,” said Stanley E. Hubbard. “She touched many people along the way, not just us.”