Judith Ann Turk Russell, beloved mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother, passed away peacefully at her home in Denton, Texas on Tuesday, June 2nd, 2026 at the age of 82.

Judy was born in Beaumont, Texas on February 2nd, 1944 to James Matt Turk and Mabel Eulalie Turk (and she made sure to tell everyone that she couldn’t wait to leave). Her father tragically passed away of stomach cancer when she was only 4 years old, and her mother raised Judy and her younger brother Jimmy on her own.

The loss of her father was hard on Judy and it was a wound she carried her whole life. She would talk of her memories of him often and fondly, particularly how he used to stop at the pharmacy on his way home from work every day to get a strawberry ice cream for the two of them to share.

Judy met her husband, Joe, in 1958 when she was 14. He was 17. And though Judy’s mother was not thrilled about her hanging out with a wild boy like Joe, she knew if she forbade it, Judy would still find a way to do it. So, Eulalie had a conversation with Joe. She sat down a few rules for him to follow when her daughter was around him. He gladly agreed. And for the most part he seemed to have made good on his word.

According to Judy, Joe had another girlfriend when she met him. When this girl confronted Judy about rumors that she had eyes for Joe, Judy made it clear by the end of summer she would be wearing Joe’s letterman jacket and the ring the girl had around her neck. Judy wasn’t lying. That’s exactly what happened. They were married on April 2nd, 1963 in Beaumont, a year after she graduated from Beaumont High School (class of 1962).

The two of them went on to have four children: Christopher Alan in January 1964, Kevin Patrick in May 1967, Jennifer Jo in January 1970, and Erin Paige in May 1974. Over the years, they moved several times for Joe’s job: first to Humble, just outside of Houston, when Joe took a job with Norville-Wilder Oil during the oil boom, then later to Shreveport, Louisiana. Their final move was in the 80s. With their son Chris at LSU and their son Kevin graduating high school, Joe took a job with Sally Beauty and they moved their smaller family to Denton, Texas, where Judy would live out the rest of her years.

Family was the most important thing to Judy and she loved hers fiercely. Over the years, she was blessed with seven grandchildren: Nicholas Creed, Dixie Jane, Guthrie Giles, William Anthony, Lillian Pearl, Harlan James, and Cash Parker. Judy and Joe raised two of their grandchildren, Nicholas and Dixie, as their own. The light of her life, her great-granddaughter, Selah Dove, was born in March 2023.

In addition to her own, Judy truly loved all children and had a passion for working with them. She volunteered and was PTA mom throughout her own children's school years, worked at Nicholas and Dixie’s school, Sam Houston Elementary School in Denton, as a paraprofessional from 2001 until her retirement in 2014, and was a dedicated cheerleader for any extracurriculars, hobbies, or passions her kids gravitated to. She also spent her life serving and helping others in any capacity she could, from her many years volunteering at the Denton Food Bank and her time volunteering at Lake Forest Retirement Village in their thrift store up until she passed. When her husband, Joe, was diagnosed with cancer in 2020, she became his primary and devoted caretaker up until his death in April 2023.

Matt Turk said his daughter Judy was vaccinated with a phonograph needle. She could talk, a supreme communicator and story teller. She never met a stranger and anyone she met, they would be sure friends if she had anything to say about it. She was a joyful person with a wicked sense of humor, a sweet and mischievous personality. If anyone ever had an angel on one shoulder and a devil on the other it was Judy. Her rapid fire conversational style was famous or infamous depending on who you ask. She was highly opinionated and not afraid to speak her mind, traits she was proud to have passed down to her daughters and granddaughters.

She was a homemaker, mother to six children and an unreasonable number of dogs, cats, birds, fish, and hamsters over her lifetime. She had an unmistakable laugh. A patron of the arts, she loved music, ballet, theater. She was a collector of many things: angels, bears, rabbits, paintings. Judy loved owls and hummingbirds, Audrey Hepburn and Elvis Presley.

Judy is preceded in death by her parents, Matt and Eulalie, brother Jimmy, daughter Erin, and husband Joe. She is survived by her sons, Chris & wife Jill, and Kevin & wife Robin, her daughter Jennifer, grandchildren Nicholas & wife Criselle, Dixie, Guthrie, Lillian, William, Harlan, and Cash, and her great-granddaughter Selah.

A service will be held on Friday, June 12th at 10am at DeBerry Funeral Home in Denton, TX, with a visitation before at 9am and interment after at Roselawn Memorial Park. A reception to celebrate Judy’s vibrant and long life will follow at Dan’s Silverleaf Bar from 12pm-3pm for any who would like to join.

In lieu of flowers, our family welcomes you to make a charitable donation in Judy’s name to the American Diabetes Association, St. Jude Children’s Hospital, or any children’s hospital or children’s charity.

If you would still like to send flowers, they can be sent to Bill DeBerry Funeral Home in Denton, Texas.