Karen Hinkley Sassi, 75, passed away on April 9^th, 2020, in Richmond, Texas. Born a Prisoner of War on January 30^th, 1945, in the Los Banos Japanese Internment Camp, Manila, Philippines, to two journalists detained in the POW camp, Jay Augustus Hinkley and Luckey Kathleen (Charter) Hinkley, she was raised in the Philippines with her two, dear, younger sisters, Linda Hinkley Lucas and Kathy Hinkley Duarte.

She left the Philippines and came to the United States when she was 19 years old. In 1965, she met a copier salesman, Ralph Sassi, in Chicago, Illinois and was soon married. Together they raised 5 children, Steve (1967), David (1969), Anthony (1977), Christina Wilcox (1981), and Larissa Sassi Mertel (1983). The light of her life has always been her 11 beautiful grandchildren, Keyleigh, Jacob, Dean Jr., Deanne, Nick, Alexandra, Desiree, Dallas, Ben, Logan, and Ethan. In 2009, a few years after her husband’s death (2004), she left Chicago and moved to Sugarland, Texas to be near her daughter and son.

A devout Franciscan Catholic, she was an activist who marched for many Catholic social causes both in Illinois and Texas. She was a well-known member of her churches, St. Emily’s in Mt. Prospect, IL, St. Thomas the Apostle in Crystal Lake, IL, St. Laurence in Sugarland TX, and St. Faustina in Fulshear, TX.

Because of these unusual times, the celebration of Karen’s life will be via a web conference on Sunday, April 19^th, at 5pm CST. Here is the link: https://us04web.zoom.us/j/77333217351. Please message Steve Sassi on Facebook, or email steve_sassi@hotmail.com, for details and assistance signing up for a Zoom conference meeting.

In the upcoming weeks, on a date TBD, there will be an online funeral service for family and friends. In the summer, when we can finally gather in person, there will be memorial services in the Houston and Chicago areas on dates TBD. A memorial fund has been set up to help with funeral and memorial expenses. Anything above these expenses will be gifted to her grandchildren.