She was a member of the Havana Church of Christ, a para-educator with the Camden, MO school district and a foster grandparent at Sandburg Elementary School in Springfield. Judy was the first full time female firefighter in the State of Illinois with the Havana Fire Department. She later worked for the State Fire Marshall’s office. Judy was willing to participate in numerous clinical trials with experimental drugs, hoping to help someone else facing this disease later on.
She is survived by four daughters, Jennifer (Craig) Gilson, Julie (Mike) Dixon, Jo Ellen Elliott of Springfield and Jill (Joseph) Taylor of San Diego, CA. One brother, Kenneth (Dorothy) Bohm and one sister, Kay Oest both of Havana survive. Six grandchildren also survive.
A Celebration of Life will be held from 1:00 until 3:00 pm Sunday at the Hurley Funeral Home in Petersburg with a memorial service at 3:00 pm conducted by Rev. David Upchurch. Private burial will be held at a later date in the Laurel Hill Cemetery in Havana. Memorial contributions may be made to the Grandma Judy Kid’s Count Fund at Sandburg Elementary School in Springfield.