Josephine May Budny

Josephine (Jo) Stevens Budny, 88, of Hagerstown Maryland, passed away peacefully at her home on July 19, 2025 surrounded by the love of family.

Mrs. Budny was born on March 6,1937 in Hagerstown, Maryland to the late Pearl and John Stotelmyer.

She graduated from Boonsboro High School in 1955 and immediately began working at Hagerstown Leather Goods upon graduation. She later worked at the Maryland State Reformatory for males until she became pregnant with her second son, Kevin and then remained at home to raise and share her love with her boys.

She was active and supported her sons and their school by volunteering as a tutor in their elementary school. She was a proud den mother for her sons' troops when they were involved in scouting.

To prepare for returning to the workforce when her first husband became ill, she took college classes to refresh her secretarial skills. Those skills coupled with her natural ability to be detail oriented, organized, and dependable shined through in both her personal and professional life as she went on to work at Fort Ritchie in 1983. She later transferred to Letterkenny Army Depot in Chambersburg, PA in the Defense Information Systems department where she retired from in 2007.

Jo loved music especially bluegrass and country. She was a regular at the Red Run Park summer concert series. She enjoyed making her own music with her guitar and shared her love of music with her family encouraging them to learn an instrument as well. She also had a knack for finding musical events when traveling, although the beach was her happy place.

Jo was a force of light. She loved her family fiercely. She had regular lunch dates in retirement with her coworkers who became lifelong friends, many of whom were sources of comfort and support through cards and visits during her final months. One of her best expressions of love and light was through her cooking. Everyone always requested her famous potato salad for any family event. We are all convinced that her secret ingredient of love in that recipe is what will never allow it to be exactly replicated.

She is survived by her husband Vincent Budny; brothers William Stottlemyer of Mount Juliet, TN and Michael (Diane) Stottlemyer of Westminster, CO; sister Deanne Robien of Kent Island, MD; son John Stevens (Chris) of Fort Worth, Texas; stepson Anthony Budny (Amanda) of Silver Spring, MD, stepdaughter Ellizabeth Budny-Buckley (Kevin) of Falling Waters, WV as well as 8 grandchildren and 11 great-grandchildren.

She was preceded in death by her first husband Paul Stevens, son Kevin Stevens and her sister Kittie Colby of Tore, NM.

A heartfelt thank you to Willam Kerns, MD and his team, Victoria Giffi, MD and her team, and special nurses Michael at Meritus hospital and Marlee through Hospice of Washington County.

Services will be Saturday, July 26, 2025 at 11:00 am at the Douglas A. Fiery Funeral Home, 1331 Eastern Blvd. North, Hagerstown, MD. Family will receive friends one hour prior to the service. Interment will be at Mt. View Cemetery, Sharpsburg, MD.

Online condolences may be expressed at www.douglasfiery.com