Judy Markgraf

Judith “Judy” Markgraf, age 76 of Watkins, passed away July 14, 2026 at Edgewood Assisted Living in Sartell, MN.

A funeral service will be held at 11:00 AM on Friday July 24, 2026, at the Church of St. Philip in Litchfield, MN. Visitation will be held from 3:00 - 6:30 PM on Thursday July 23, 2026 at the Church of St. Philip with a 5:30 PM prayer service. Visitation will continue one hour prior to the service at church. A Rosary will take place at 10:30 AM on Friday at the church. Interment will be held at the Forest City Cemetery in Forest City.

Judy was born on August 4,1949 to Dudley and Virgie (Warren) Schultz, the first of their three children. She graduated from Litchfield High School in 1967. She began working for 3M in Hutchinson, MN and lived with friends and coworkers as an independent working woman.

In the winter of 1969, while sitting on her current beau’s lap, she flirted with one western-attired Bob Markgraf. Charmed by her, he asked her to dance with him and, some time later, to marry him. Judy and Bob, son of Carl and Rose (Suppes) Markgraf, were married on June 19, 1971 at St Matthews Church in Forest City, MN. They first made their home at Henry's Corner near Silver Lake and were soon blessed with the first two of their seven children. In 1975, they moved to Forest Prairie township south of Watkins, MN; Bob worked as a carpenter in the Twin Cities area and Judy worked as a homemaker in an original Schultz family home. Judy was an active member of St Gertrude's Catholic Church in Forest City, teaching religious education for 25+ years and serving on many committees. She treasured her years as a teacher, spreading her love of Jesus and Catholicism to several generations of learners.

As was expected in those days, once pregnant with her first child, Judy gave up her position at 3M to become a full-time wife, mother, and homemaker. Missing her coworkers and camaraderie, Judy and former coworkers-now-housewives would meet one Wednesday a month for their “Coffee Clatches” where they would catch up, gossip, and “coo” and “aah” over the newest infants brought into their sisterhood. Living closer to her parents brought many opportunities for long talks with her beloved mom, whom Judy described often as her best friend.

In the frugality necessitated by a large family and one income, Judy gardened and canned and froze fruits & vegetables and shared flocks of chickens with her parents & inlaws, reaping the rewards of fresh frozen chicken & preserved foods year round. She often sewed clothing for her first several offspring and enjoyed quilting with her grandmother and sharing her own’s mom’s numerous craft hobbies.

Judy’s life was filled with her interests & passions and those of her seven children and eventually, grandchildren, all of whom were welcomed with open arms in her home and sometimes, they stayed extra long. But once she had a room to herself, she filled it with supplies for just about every craft trend that came along: card-making, stitching, sewing, painting of ornaments and rocks and wood circles cut from last year’s Christmas tree.

Judy’s lifelong work has been the collecting of genealogical information and family photographs. Beginning as a teenager, she compiled lists, then folders, then books of names & dates and constructed a family tree with over 13,000 names included on it. Much of her research is digitalized on a computer app and the rest fills many, many large storage tubs.

Her love of family extended well past her own brood of kids & grandkids. She welcomed each child's partner into the family as one of her own and if they brought "bonus" grandchildren, all the better. Mom was known to bring guests home for Thanksgiving & Christmas, often extending invitations to those who were without family to celebrate, and piling presents upon them, too, even for last minute invites. She insisted that friends of her grandkids also call her “Grandma” and they did. Around her kitchen table, she knew no strangers.

She is survived by her children Jody Markgraf of Big Lake, David (Jessica) Markgraf of Sauk Rapids, Robert (Jenny) Markgraf of Augusta, WI, Jillhanna (Jeremy) DuMonceaux of Sauk Rapids, Joshua (Cassandra) Markgraf of St Stephen, Erin Markgraf of Sauk Rapids and Kristi Markgraf (Justin Hutton) of Richmond; grandchildren Camen Miles (Teagan Morrison); Jacob, Hannah, & Levi Markgraf, Patience & Jazlyn Meier; Isaac, Emma (Cashton Warner), Dominic, Violet & Ashley Markgraf; Trace Markgraf and Lillian & Cora DuMonceaux; Taylor (Dylan Geiselhart) & Carl Markgraf; Triston Miller; and Gavin Markgraf, great-grandson Grey Miles, brothers Richard Schultz and Charles (Kayleen) Schultz, sisters-in-law Ann Schultz & Alice Hamann, Patricia (Edward) Markgraf, Karen (Jerry) Swenson, Lynette (David) Rosenau, Darlyn Markgraf, & Vicky Martin, brothers-in-law Steve (Peg) Markgraf & Carl (Chuck) Markgraf and dozens of cousins, nieces, nephews, and close friends.

Judy was predeceased by her husband Bob, her parents Dudley & Virgie Schultz, parents-in-law Carl & Rose Markgraf, beloved Aunt Della Schultz Hallowell, and brothers-in-law Edward Markgraf, Gene Markgraf, Bruce Markgraf, Jim Markgraf, Jerry Swenson, David Rosenau, and sister-in-law Trisha Markgraf, nephew Brent Markgraf, aunts, uncles, & cousins.