Karen Kiley, Devoted 1245 Staff Member, Passes Away

Former Business Manager Tom Dalzell shares reflections on their decades of partnership and friendship

It is with deep sadness that IBEW Local 1245 shares the passing of longtime staff member and friend, Karen Kiley, who died after a courageous battle with cancer.

Karen dedicated 38 years of service to Local 1245. Initiated into the IBEW in 1983, she became part of the fabric of the union, supporting generations of officers, staff, and members with professionalism and strength. When she retired in 2021, she was serving as executive secretary to former Business Manager Tom Dalzell — a role she carried out with extraordinary care.

Dalzell, who worked alongside Karen for decades, reflected on their time together.

“I worked for Local 1245 for 40 years, and for much of that time, Karen was my confidential secretary,” he said. “She was someone I relied on completely.”

Beyond her professionalism, Dalzell remembered the personal connection they shared.

“We had the same taste in music and the same favorite singer, Emmylou Harris. When one of us heard a new country western song, we’d share it with the other,” he said.

While Karen was deeply committed to her work, Dalzell said her proudest role was being a mother and grandmother.

“From the minute she came back from maternity leave, the first thing she would tell me about was what was new with her daughter,” he said. “Her family meant everything to her.”

Karen also worked during a period of rapid technological change at the union.”

“When she started, we were on a Wang system,” Dalzell recalled. “Technology kept changing, and she kept adapting. She handled it all.”

Those who worked alongside Karen remember her as steady, kind, and deeply dedicated to the mission of the union.

“She was a good soul,” Dalzell said. “And I won’t forget her.”

Karen is survived by her husband, Dale Kiley; her daughter, Kelsey Broussard; her son-in-law, Rhece; and her two cherished grandchildren, Scarlett and Summer. Her legacy lives on not only in the decades of service she gave to Local 1245, but in the family she adored and the many lives she touched along the way.