Judith Ann Chaffee

Judith Ann “Judy” Chaffee, 87, of St. Peter, MN died peacefully on Friday, September 11, 2026, at the Benedictine Living Community in St. Peter Minnesota.

Judy was born on August 23, 1939, in Lamberton, MN to Raymond and Perle (Bellig) Johnson. She graduated from Lamberton High School in 1957 and from Gustavus Adolphus College in 1961.

Then she began changing lives, one child at a time, over a span of 38 years of teaching elementary school in New Jersey, Mahtomedi, MN, Cedar Falls, IA and Nevada, IA. In their retirement, Judy and her husband Forrest enjoyed living in St. Peter, traveling to their place in Mesa, AZ, and spending time at Ten Mile Lake in Hackensack, MN.

Judy loved life and these were a few of her favorite things: Making Mix, distributing Mix, “frolicking” in Ten Mile Lake, college basketball, hearing jokes, telling jokes, playing jokes, playing cribbage, playing bridge, playing golf, Southern Comfort, her printer, sipping Anisette, bacon & eggs, boat rides, Rummikub on the deck, sunsets from the dock, jigsaw puzzles, the Jumble puzzle, smoked salmon, sweet corn, going for walks, going to church, and the United States Postal Service. These things brought her happiness, but her true joy was found in her family and her friends, old and new.

Judy was preceded in death by her parents, her husband Forrest Chaffee, and her son Trip.

She will be missed by her sisters, Jane and Jeanne, her companion David Zender, her children Heather (Mark) Stonacek, Kris Chaffee, Jon (Tracy) Chaffee, her grandchildren Quad, Kannon, and Holly Kilander, Kiera Hagen, Ray and Stuart Stonacek, Sara and Natalie Chaffee-Bates, Sally, Will and Jake Chaffee, and her new great granddaughter Flora Stonacek.

A memorial service will be held on Saturday, September 26 at First Lutheran Church in St. Peter, MN with a visitation at 10:00, service at 11:00 and luncheon at noon.

Memorial gifts may be made to First Lutheran Church, St. Peter or the Ten Mile Lake Association, Hackensack MN.

The live stream link below is a complimentary service provided by Mankato Area Funeral Homes. Unforeseen technical, internet, facility, and/or acoustical circumstances may produce a diminished end product. Please note, if the live stream does not appear, we are attempting to record and publish the service for later viewing.