Judy Swezy born Judith Mae Sutter in Chicago, IL. to Bernard and Ruth Sutter. At the age of 10 the family moved to Kansas City where Judy continued her education and went on to attend Northeast High School and later graduated a proud Viking! She was a stellar student always proud of her perfect grades, excelling most in her favorite subjects, English with an emphasis in grammar. During her early years in Kansas City after the passing of her father, she and her mother Ruth were in need of a place to stay. It was Mr. and Mrs. Edith Ricono of Northeast that helped them by placing them in a vacant building off of Independence Avenue. Judy was often reminiscent of the “Wonderful homemade Italian food” the Ricono’s would invite her and her mother to partake on a weekly basis. Sometime, after graduating Northeast she began working at Lake City Ammunition Plant for Remington Arms doing “8 Round” in building 2. Later she would go on to Sears & Roebuck warehouse off Truman Road as a freight handler, which she said, “Kept her in great shape!” She later took a position at General Motors for11 ½ years in GA doing “Bodysides” and working the “I & P” lines between both Fairfax and Leeds assembly plants. She was very proud of being a working woman, then in a “mans” world. She wasn’t afraid to do her part. After the closing of the General Motors Leeds plant, she took a position with the Government at Commerce Back Card Dept. where she spend 14 years until her retirement. The latter years of her life, she would spend fighting Bladder Cancer and winning that fight and then B-Cell Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma, which she continued to fight until the end although not her ultimate demise. She attributes her cancer wins to the great care the KU Cancer team aided her in battling especially that of Dr. Chintala, many wonderful nurses. Her friend Sara at the center that aided her with moral support and oversight of her treatment schedule while undergoing treatments for both kinds of cancer at the center. Judy was a wonderful woman making friends everywhere she went and that’s largely attributed to her honest and true north personality. She is preceded in death by her parents and daughter Jeanine Lea Bergin. She is survived by daughter Terri Nelson and Son Timothy Lemka. Judy left behind a wonderful legacy of family consisting of six grandchildren and seven great grandchildren. She loved being a grandmother and great grandmother above all else. She will be greatly missed by many family and friends. She was a true Matriarch.
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