Judith Ann Shawn

Charlotte - Judith (Judy) Ann Hodge Shawn passed away peacefully on Friday, October 24, 2025, in Charlotte, NC.

Judy was born on December 19,1943, in Marion, Kentucky, to Eugene and Helen Hughes Hodge. She graduated from Crittenden County High School and the University of Tennessee.

While living in Clarksville, TN, with the Halley family in the summer of 1964, Judy met the love of her life, Jim Shawn. They married in 1965 while Jim was stationed at Fort Campbell, KY. In 1966, they welcomed their first daughter, Alicia. Later that year, the family moved to Knoxville, TN where their second daughter, Amy, was born in 1967. Jim and Judy made Knoxville their home for the next 56 years.

At Farragut Middle School, Judy taught lab-based science classes for twenty-two years and made costumes for the students in the Drama Club productions. Judy was an active member of Bearden United Methodist Church for ten years and Concord Presbyterian Church for over forty-five years.

Welcoming friends and family at her home - both inside and out - made Judy smile. At the dinner (or breakfast) table, Judy would not take "No" for an answer when offering meals to her guests. Their dogwood trees, daisies and wildflower garden provided enjoyment, as Jim and Judy worked side by side to create the backyard's beauty. Judy loved sitting at her kitchen table while doing the daily crossword puzzle from the Knoxville News Sentinel, looking out the window to see birds, squirrels, and chipmunks eating the birdseed left for them. Judy also loved the family cats. Daisy Duck, Alex, Ernie, and Bebe were members of the Shawn household. Even as a child, she was known for carrying a cat home and acting like the cat just showed up in their yard. Music was a constant companion for Judy throughout her life, and she loved to play her baby grand piano.

Judy's greatest joy was her three granddaughters, Emma, Ashley and Lauren. On one visit to Charlotte to see her grandbabies, Jim had not even put the car in park in the driveway and Judy had already jumped out to see the girls. Emma, Ashley and Lauren thought the world of their grandmother. Judy would make bedspreads, pillows and clothes for their American Girl Dolls. The girls would attend Camp Mimi and Papaw in the summer ... a week each of them had by themselves with their grandparents.

Judy is survived by her two daughters, Alicia Shawn Gagnon, and her husband, Ed, of Charlotte, NC, and their daughter, Emma, and her fiancé, Sam Gooch; Amy Shawn Foley and her husband, Jeff, of Charlotte, NC and their daughters, Ashley and Lauren. She is also survived by her sister, Greta Hodge of Gulf Shores, AL and many cousins, nieces and nephews.

Judy was preceded in death by her loving husband Jim, who passed away 36 hours earlier, on October 22, 2025. They celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary in April 2025. Judy was also preceded in death by her parents and her brother, Lieutenant Colonel Larry Hodge.

Alicia and Amy are so grateful for the kind and compassionate care given to their mother both in Epworth/Independent Living and Cuthbertson Village/Memory Care at Aldersgate.

A Celebration of Life for Judy and her husband, Jim, will be held at 1:00 PM on Friday, November 21, 2025, at Aldersgate in Ray Hall Chapel/Fellowship Hall. The family will receive friends following the service in the Wintergarden Club Room.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be offered in memory of Judy to: Aldersgate Employee Christmas Fund, Patti Klein, Treasurer, Aldersgate Resident Association, 3800 Shamrock Drive, Charlotte, NC 28215 (include in the memo line: 2025 Christmas Fund in Memory of Judy Shawn) or to VIA Health Partners, P.O. Box 470408, Charlotte, NC 28247 (https://www.viahp.org).

Arrangements are in the care of Kenneth W. Poe Funeral & Cremation Service, 1321 Berkeley Ave., Charlotte, NC 28204; (704) 641-7606. Online condolences may be shared at www.kennethpoeservices.com.