JUDITH KAY (STALEY) VONKAENEL

May 15, 1943 – Nov 3, 2026 Judith Kay (Staley) VonKaenel, 83, of Savannah, Missouri, passed away on November 3, 2026, at Mosaic Life Care, surrounded by her loving family. Judy was born on May 15, 1943, in Providence, Rhode Island to Walter and Edith (Knapp) Staley, both of whom preceded her in death. Judy graduated from Cedar Falls High School in Cedar Falls, Iowa. Then she came to Missouri to teach swimming lessons at the YWCA during the summer and fell in love with the love of her life, Lynn VonKaenel. On April 2, 1966, she married Lynn VonKaenel; they celebrated 51 years of marriage before his passing in 2018. After the birth of their son, who was deaf, Judy taught herself sign language. Determined to communicate with him and support his education, she would travel to libraries in Kansas City to find books on sign language and sought additional instruction at The School for the Deaf in Fulton, Missouri.

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