After a long struggle with dementia, Judith Lynn Christensen Peterson, beloved mother, grandmother, great grandmother, sister and friend passed away peacefully at home with her family around her. She was born February 21, 1937 to Hyrum William and LaVerne Steed Christensen and raised in a loving family with her older sister, Janet in Salt Lake City, UT. She graduated from East High School and then attended the University of Utah, where she affiliated with Tri Delta Sorority and majored in History with a minor in English. She was one of the original founding members of the Gopher Girls which began at Uintah Elementary and continued her relationships with these ladies throughout her life. She married Raymond Reid Peterson in the Salt Lake Temple on March 20, 1959. She taught AP Political Science and AP English at Skyline High School for 10 years and then went to work for the Epilepsy Association of Utah as the Educational Director. She then went back to school and graduated from BYU with her Masters in Social Work and worked in home health care and nursing centers all while raising her three children.
Judy was an active member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints where she had many callings, but her most favorite calling was Young Women's Leader. She was very encouraging and supportive of her family and their activities and loved to travel and took her children on many trips to California. Sometimes these trips included her sister, nephews, niece and her parents. She was a gourmet cook and loved cooking and introducing new foods to her family. She also loved knitting and was proud she had a perfect gauge and enjoyed making many one of a kind sweaters for family and friends. She was the life of a party with her blonde hair and her witty intelligence that people gravitated to her. Many saw her genuine interest she took in them and she had many friends.
She is preceded in death by her parents, her daughter, Lynda, her brother-in-law, Hugh C. Cummings and her nephew, Cory Cummings. She leaves behind her husband, Raymond, her children, Lori, and Mark. Her grandchildren, Madison S. Timothy, Lynda A. Timothy and Peterson S. Timothy (Jennifer) and her four great grandchildren, Lucas, Amelia, Joelle and Benjamin.
A viewing for Judy will be held at Larkin Sunset Lawn Mortuary, 2350 East 1300 South on June 7 from 6 - 8 pm. The funeral service will be June 8 at the Crestview Ward Chapel at 2795 East Crestview Drive at 11 am with a visitation prior to the funeral at 9:30 - 10:30 a.m. Interment will be immediately following the funeral services at Larkin Sunset Lawn Cemetery, 2350 East 1300 South.
The Salt Lake Tribune | Salt Lake City, Utah | June 6, 2019