Obituary of Judith Kay Stanley

Judith Kay "Judy" Stanley Judy K. Stanley was born January 17, 1943 in Wichita, Kansas to Viola L. Cobb (maiden name, Clark) and Henry Carl Cobb. She died June 14, 2012 in Bucoda, Washington surrounded by loved ones and blessed by the Almighty. Judy was a gift to everyone she met, she had so many talents and so many positive qualities that she brought light wherever she went, whatever she did. Her life was full of incredible experiences making her an amazing woman. She was more than a dear friend, a cousin or niece, a wonderful daughter and daughter-in-law, a terrific mom and mother-in-law and grandmother, a devoted wife, a super-great sister or sister-in-law, a caring and capable teacher, an incredible and diverse folk artist, an accomplished seamstress, a super neighbor, and a passionate gardener; she was Judy! Full of life and resilience, with a positive outlook, full of inspiration, spark and gumption! She was great at making plans, adjusting as necessary, and happily seeing them through, whether a lesson plan for second grade math and reading, or a sewing project, or moving to Missouri or Arizona, or a day trip to the beach. That’s how most adventures start, and that was Judy’s way. Many of you have sent thoughtful letters explaining the touching impact or special role she played in your lives – thank you for letting us know because we love her so, too. Judy is preceded in death by other members of her family including both her parents, Viola and Carl Henry, and her sisters, Karen Gardner, and Debbie Gartner, and her nephew, Curt Gardner, and grandson, Grady P. Stanley. She is survived (what a strange way of putting it), better said, she is kept in loving and living memory by her kids and their spouses and grandchildren: Floyd Lawrence (Larry) Stanley, Jennifer Skol, and Gabby Skol and K’Lea Canterbury; David Michael Stanley, Stephanie Stanley, and Steven and Lauren; Rebecca Stanley-Kilpatrick, Sean Kilpatrick, and Maura and Maeve. Also, her brother and his wife, Gary and Lorri Cobb, and Judy’s nieces and nephew: Ronda and Laurie, and Tracy, and Wendy and Matt. Judy led a wonderful life. She was born in a small town and came of age when the American dream really could come true. She moved from Kansas with her family when she was still in elementary school, and grew up at the foot of Pikes Peak in the charming town of Manitou Springs, Colorado, but always kept in touch with the Kansas family. Judy’s stories of cruising the Garden of the Gods wearing handmade poodle skirts with her girl friends in her daddy’s Caddy will always strike me as what the ‘good old days’ really looked like. She was a cheerleader at Manitou High School, and later would marry her high school sweetheart who was the captain of the football team– Judy had a totally classic high school romance and became a dynamic career wife in the 60’s and 70’s. Married to Michael (Mickey) Floyd Stanley in June 1963, Judy enjoyed creating cocktail fondue parties and dinner parties to schmooze the husband’s latest clients. She was a strong force on the ski slopes of Colorado or on tennis court at the local country club. Judy attended many tennis camps and health retreats with her friends. Once in Keystone, CO, at a tennis retreat, she played and won a match with an Apollo astronaut! As the years went by, and her husband’s building business continued to flourish, she and her husband also enjoyed many cross-country motorcycle trips, and excursions with Ports of Call travel club to destinations all over, exposing her to a world of differences and a wide variety of human experiences that later on in life she appreciated in a completely different way. Judy never stopped learning or loving the world she lived in. When her divorced from Mickey occurred in 1977 or so, she moved the family (herself, the kids and family dog and cat) to Breckenridge, Colorado for a few years. In January of 1980, she took the family on a big move to Arizona, although it was a settle because Australia was her first choice! She raised her three kids through high school in a wonderfully stable and supportive home in Tempe, Arizona, in a great neighborhood with good schools and friends all around. She worked part-time as a sales representative for the Thomas Register, and later as an office manager for Merry Maids, but she was always a full-time mom, taking care of the kids and everything thing else that makes a house a home. Showing her adeptness to new challenges, she took on the learning computers in the workplace when it was all brand new in the 1980’s. She also joined Holy Spirit, a Catholic church in Tempe where she found fellowship and community in a very positive way. Judy’s sewing skills were much appreciated by the Church and the other members of the Art and Environment Committee while she attended Holy Spirit. Certainly the community of faith she found in the Church went with her after leaving the neighborhood of Holy Spirit, but she always had her connection in her heart and anywhere else she practiced her faith, especially when she could share the Spirit with life-long and dear friends and family. After raising the kids and having her ex-husband skip out on her alimony payments causing her financial ruin, she ‘lost’ her house and home, her community and everything else she had been building for over ten years, but she pulled it together, made a plan and went to college at Arizona State University and earned her bachelor’s in Elementary Education, with a GPA of 3.8 and honors (Summa cum laude). She then moved back to Colorado and began what was to be a very successful ten year career teaching second grade at Columbian Elementary in Las Animas, Colorado. She was more than a dedicated and professional educator in the classroom. Judy worked terrifically with other teachers, making colleagues into more than partners in education, and some became very dear and long-lasting friends. Judy took on roles and leadership positions on the Southeast UniServ board, and served as a member of Delta Kappa Gamma, a professional teacher organization. She was also a building representative on the Negotiations Team for the Las Animas Education Association and put in many hours helping to get the best agreements for teachers and their students. Judy took an early retirement due to health reasons not related to cancer. She first moved to Missouri to live with her friends, Judy and Mark Geres, and in 2007 relocated to live with her daughter and family in Laveen, Arizona. In spring of 2008, Judy took the long way to Washington State, visiting her son and his family in Chillicothe, Texas, and then landed in Bucoda, Washington by summer where she took up gardening with a passion while living with her son, Larry, and his spouse, Jenn and kids and Jenn’s grandmother, Daisy. Judy continued crafting or making great utilitarian folk arts especially since the weather in Washington is rather wet and rainy. Some of Judy’s most recent creations were woven and sewn fabric baskets, and handbags made of repurposed neckties, and cozy fleece animal hats – such as a giraffe, a zebra, and a frog. The past few years, Grandma Judy would help Gabby and Maeve prepare their animal costumes for the annual Procession of the Species in Olympia. And she always had a backlog of quilting projects and sewing projects at hand, too! Judy also was a beekeeper who kept mason bees out in the garden to help pollinate orchard blossoms and other early bloomers in low temperatures with a lot of humidity. Between all the creative projects and the crafts, her bees, her kids and grandkids, her new family and friends in Bucoda and nearby, and all the other blessings, Judy enjoyed the last few years of her life very much. She was diagnosed with cancer in 2011, took on a few rounds of chemotherapy and one or two radiation cycles, but it wasn’t enough to recover her health. The cancer spread this spring (2012) to other organs, and soon thereafter, she died. But she was prepared: she had lived her life truly and fully, she was blessed by the Church, she had her family around her, and she was done with her work on this Earth. It was her time to go on to whatever comes next. And maybe when you think of Judy, think of her as you would a star in heaven, resilient and bright and inspiring, and may she live on in your love of her, shining brightly in your heart. Please leave memories of Judy or condolences for the family in the Guestbook below.