Hi, my name is Karen (Rakers) Braundmeier.  I grew up on a farm on the north side of Aviston, the 6th of 7 children.  I have lived in Aviston all my life.  It’s such a great place to raise a family!

I went to high school at Mater Dei in Breese, IL and continued my education at Kaskaskia College on a softball scholarship, and finished up at SIUE with a bachelor’s degree in 1992.

In 1992, I began my career at St. Paul Elementary in Highland, IL teaching 2nd grade.  After teaching in Highland for 5 years, I was lucky enough to be hired on as a teacher at Aviston Elementary, and have been teaching here ever since.  I taught 4th grade for one year and 3rd grade from 1998-present.

My husband, Art, and I have 3 children, Logan, Abigail and Reed.  We enjoy watching our kids’ sporting events, Cardinal baseball and Green Bay Packers football.