Judy J Carmichael

Judith J. Carmichael, 75, of Kendallville, Indiana, passed away at 10:55 p.m. Tuesday, January 26, 2016, at Presence Sacred Heart Home in Avilla. She was surrounded by her family.Born December 12, 1940, on the family farm in rural Whitley County, she was the daughter of Roy V. and Mildred L. (Marshall) Baxter.

As a young girl, Judy enjoyedhaving funand was very social. She attended Larwill High School and started working at Blue Bell in Columbia City. One night while out with some friends, she watched a young Don Carmichael performing on stage. They caught each others eye and immediately started dating. On May 1, 1965, Judy and Donald L. Carmichael marriedin Albion. She had worked at other various jobs including, Dana Weatherhead in Columbia City and Syracuse, Square D, and was a waitress at Fish of Stroh in Stroh. They had lived in the Whitley County and LaGrange area for most of the time. In 1980, Don took a job offer, and the family moved to Texas.They laterreturnedto LaGrange in 1985.

Judy was an outstanding cook, and her family will miss her world-renowned potato salad, her great cookouts with cheeseburgers and fries, her spaghetti dinners, and of course, her apple dumpling desert. Judy loved being around her family and friends. With a heart of gold, she would help out anyone in need. She was known for opening up her home to people when they needed a place tostay,and she was always there to solve everyones problems. When she was not socializing or having her family weekend get-togethers, she was playing bingo.

Shewas known to go around to the bingo halls six days a week as well as twice on Saturdays and Sundays. She was all business and took bingo seriously, having numerousbingo packsin front of her each time. Another hobby she had was being an avid garage sale shopper. She may not have needed the item, but she knew somebody just might needit some day!

The world would forever change for Judy on the Wednesday afternoon of July 7, 1999, when her husband Don passed away. She would later move to Kendallville before going into Presence Sacred Heart Home in August of 2015.

Survivors include her daughters, Donna (Dave Frank) Akers of Logansport and Deb (Wally) Goad of Gas City; sons, Gene Coffelt, Jr. of Warsaw, Dan (Dorinda) Carmichael of Avilla, and Darren (Erinn) Carmichael of Garrett; step-daughters, Robin Christensen of Michigan City and Dawn (Chris) Bohnert of LaPorte; step-son, Don (Debbie) Christensen, Jr. of Elkhart; sister, Sharon Conley of Columbia City; brothers, Richard (Mae) Baxter of Columbia City and Gerald Baxter of Columbia City; 19 grandchildren; and 12 great-grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her parents; husband; daughter, Janet Kay Carmichael; sisters, Janet Coffelt and Ruth Johnson; brother, Bill Baxter; and two grandchildren, Coree Elizabeth Carmichael and Jeremy Dean Goad.

Visitation will be Sunday, January 31, 2016, from 2 to 5 p.m. at DeMoney-Grimes, a Life Story Funeral Home, 600 Countryside Drive, Columbia City. Funeral services will be 1 p.m. Monday at the funeral home. She will be laid to rest next to Don at South Park Annex Cemetery in Columbia City. Memorial donations may be made in her honor to the First Church of Christ in Garrett. Visit www.demoneygrimes.com to send her family condolences or sign the guest register book.