Judith R. "Judy" Wilson

Judith "Judy" R. Wilson (née Terlau), 83, died peacefully on Thursday, February 20, surrounded by her family. With unwavering faith, a loving heart, and a wonderful sense of humor, she touched everyone in her life and left a lasting impression with her sweet and caring nature.
She was preceded in death by her beloved husband of 62 years, Bill, and her parents, Jack and Virginia Terlau. She leaves behind her five siblings, Jacque, John, Dan, Tony and Mary; eight children, Laura (Steve), Chris (Cathy), Tom, Julie (Sean), Jim (Holly), Brian (Amanda), Andy (Bridgette) and Virginia (Nathan); 27 grandchildren; 24 great-grandchildren; and numerous extended family members and friends.
Judy was born on April 2, 1941, in Covington, Kentucky. She grew up on Floral Avenue in Ft. Mitchell, and went to grade school at Blessed Sacrament. In 1953 the family moved into a 1200-square-foot brick house that her dad and Uncle Bill built in the country off of Price Pike. Judy finished grade school at St. Paul then went on to graduate from St. Henry High School, where she met the love of her life, Bill Wilson.
While she and Bill dated, Judy carpooled with Jacque and two friends to their jobs at Western & Southern downtown. She had fun spending money on gifts for her parents, and on beautiful music she would bring home to play on the family record player. On June 9, 1962, Judy and Bill were married at Mary Queen of Heaven Church in Erlanger. They had a tent reception at home in the yard, which Judy's family had prepared for the celebration.
Judy and Bill spent their first 10 years of marriage living on several naval bases throughout the country. They were in Eleuthera in the Bahamas with no hospital when they were expecting their first child, so Judy flew home to give birth and then flew back alone with the baby. She was very proud of Bill's Navy service, although she missed her family terribly. Her stories from those years were of missing Bill during his 6-month deployments, and of getting to see her mom, dad, brothers, sisters, and Aunt Rose and Aunt Helen-during OCS training with Jacque and Ray in Newport, RI; coming home during Bill's training; being stationed in Jacksonville near John; and having visitors in Eleuthera, Norfolk and San Diego.
In 1972 Bill left the Navy, and the couple came home with five children. They moved into their house of 46 years on Honeysuckle Terrace in Florence, joined St. Paul school and parish, and had three more children. As a mom, Judy had superhuman patience. She built her kids up, was impressed with their talents, reveled in their happiness, and welcomed them back home as adults anytime they needed.
She knew what mattered in life: Love. Kindness. Faith. Education. And she lived to help people. After raising her family, Judy worked for 17 years at the Boone County Adult Learning Center to help people get their GEDs, including the inmates at the local jail. She helped her Aunt Kathleen get to Mass on Sundays, delivered meals to anyone struggling, was a sympathetic listener, and continued to help wherever she could during her chemo treatments and declining health.
Judy appreciated people and enjoyed things deeply-rocking a baby, hearing beautiful singing, eating cookies, feeling the warm sun, noticing the blooming flowers. She would exclaim about these pleasures to whoever she was with. Her attentive presence made you feel like the most important person in the world.
One of her many charming qualities was how she loved hearing jokes but was notorious for misremembering them and cracking herself up before the punchlines when she'd try to retell them. She was a steady and positive force. Her family adored her, and they will miss her dearly.
Judy donated her body to the University of Cincinnati's College of Medicine. A memorial Mass will be held at 10:00am on Saturday, March 15, at St. Barbara Catholic Church, 4042 Turkeyfoot Road, Erlanger, KY. The family will be available at the church for visitation from 9:00 to 9:50am. A eulogy will be given just before Mass. Judy's family invites everyone to the Sterling Event Center at St. Barbara after Mass for a lunch reception to celebrate her life. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital or a charity of your choosing.