Judith J. Burgess
Judith Jane Burgess, 74, passed away peacefully at home on Sept. 12, 2021. Judi was born on Dec. 24, 1946, to Vernon and Virginia (Martin) Ames in Waukon. She and her seven siblings were raised in the country in McGregor, where they attended a one room schoolhouse. When she reached middle school age, she attended Mar-Mac Middle and High School also in McGregor. In the eighth grade, she met Richard “Andy” Anderson (aka “Dick” in his youth), and they dated throughout high school. She graduated from Mar-Mac High School in 1964, and in 1965, Andy and Judi were married. Together they had five children.
In 1973, Andy and Judi divorced. It was not long thereafter that she met her loving, life-partner, Victor F. “Vic” Burgess. The couple married in 1980 and had 41 wonderful years together. In Hawaii, they enjoyed going to the beach, spending time with friends and hosting family visitors. In 1993, the year that her first two granddaughters were born, they made the decision to move back to her home state of Iowa to be with family. Being a grandmother brought Judi such great joy. Judi enjoyed spending time with family most of all. She enjoyed the weekend getaways planned with her siblings, and the one-on-one time she had with her sister, Joan, on several cross country and weekend trips.
From 1993 to 2005, she worked at Calhoun Burns and Associates in West Des Moines, where she met her best friend of 28 years, Diana Schaller. Diana and Judi joined a bowling league together and Judi loved the tournament weekends where she was able to spend time laughing, sharing stories and winning trophies. That group of ladies then also introduced her to the game of golf, which she enjoyed tremendously. In 2002, she joined the amazing groups Baldwin White Architects and Conyers Design/The Design Group in West Des Moines. Judi enjoyed her bosses and co-workers immensely and created many friendships. She retired in 2015.
Together, Judi and Vic enjoyed retirement by visiting family and friends, watching TV shows and movies together, visiting family near and far and taking care of their beloved pets.
Judith is survived by her loving husband, Victor Burgess, West Des Moines, and her beloved dog, Nala; her children Jay (Amy) Anderson of Las Vegas, Nev., Scott Anderson of Bear, Del., Amy Roppe of Greer, S.C., Troy (Jamie) Anderson of West Des Moines, and Todd (Emily) Anderson of Lancaster, Calif.; her grandchildren Kimberly (DJ) Cook, Kiana (Kyle) Cauwels, Vanessa Anderson, Britta Roppe, Kyle Anderson, Valerie Anderson, and Emil Anderson. She is also survived by her siblings Gary Ames, Joan (Bob) Mezera, Rod (Rosemary) Ames, Cliff (Sandy) Ames, Marty (Jeannine) Ames and sisters-in-law Marilyn Ames and Judy Good. She is preceded in death by her parents Vernon and Virginia Ames, siblings Merlin and Dan Ames and sister-in-law Juanita Ames.
A visitation will be held on Saturday, Sept. 25, from 1 to 3 p.m., immediately followed by a celebration of life, both to be held at Caldwell Parrish Funeral Home, 8201 Hickman Rd., Urbandale. The family requests that you wear something colorful, your favorite sports jersey, jeans or anything you feel comfortable in as we honor and celebrate Judi’s life.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that you follow Judi’s example and make memorial contributions to your local animal rescue or to the Gary Sinise Foundation supporting veterans, or just do something kind and generous for someone who could use a little extra help. Online condolences may be expressed at www.caldwellparrish.com.
