Judith Alyce Hartong

Judy A. Hartong, 79, of Lansing, IA, died Tuesday, May 26, 2020, after a brief illness at Thornton Manor Nursing Center in Lansing. A private family graveside service will be held at Lansing Ridge Cemetery, rural Lansing. A celebration of life service for friends and family will be held at a future date. Martin Funeral Home in Waukon is handling arrangements. Condolences may be sent to Scott Hartong at 1062 Hwy 9, Waukon, IA  52172.

Judith Alyce Hartong (Dee) was born November 24, 1940, in Lansing, IA, the daughter of Cletus and MayBelle (Layer) Dee. Judy was a member of the Evangelical United Brethren Church, later known as Lansing United Methodist Church, where she served early in her young adult life as a Sunday school teacher with her mom MayBelle Dee and also attended Women's Circle group meetings. In her late adult life, she served in the ministry of preparing and serving food for local church gatherings. Judy graduated from Kee High School in Lansing in 1958 and later that year married Dale Herbert Hartong of Churchtown, IA. They were married 51 years and two children were born of this union. Dale and Judy were active dairy farmers for 30+ years and Judy was always an integral part of the family dairy farm in rural Lansing. They later moved to the farm of Judy's parents on Mays Prairie Road in rural Lansing, where they continued to crop farm and live out their golden years.

Judy & Dale enjoyed many fishing trips to the Mississippi River and Canada with friends. Some of Judy's favorite memories were the many snowmobile trips riding with the "Little Ridge Runners" snowmobile club, which she and Dale founded. She loved the outdoors and had a natural "green thumb". Judy had several flower gardens in her yard and raised a wide variety of flowers, often sharing seedlings from her favorites with friends so others could plant and enjoy their beauty as she did. She also loved her garden ponds, where every winter she would bring in the goldfish to protect them from the harsh weather and then return them to the ponds again in the spring. She loved feeding the birds and enjoyed all the wildlife that was visible from her sunroom windows. Judy loved taking pictures and video of all the wildlife on the farm, often while riding her 4-wheeler. She used the pictures to make personalized calendars which she gave to family and friends for Christmas. A task that is daunting to some, Judy loved mowing her yard on her John Deere mower. To her, it brought back fond memories of riding tractors on the farm and working in the fields. Judy also loved to travel. She took many bus trips sponsored by local banks, a cruise to Alaska, a trip out West, and a road trip to Maine, which included a trip down through the New England states during the fall color season. Judy was an avid fan of the Green Bay Packers and NASCAR. One of her favorite trips was to Bristol Motor Speedway to watch her favorite driver finish his racing career. She also took many trips to Tennessee, where she enjoyed visiting her daughter, granddaughters, and great-grandchildren. Judy was a very good cook and baker and her special chocolate cake was always a favorite at special gatherings.

Judy is survived by her two children: Cindy (Tony) Arnold of Greenback, TN, and Scott Hartong (loving partner Kim Grote) of Waukon, IA; grandchildren: Chrissy (Wes) Clenney and Kelly Jo (Kevin) Windle of Maryville, TN, Malory Larson of Decorah, IA, and Jenna (Shermain) Mosley of LaCrosse, WI; great-grandchildren: Carson Crouch, Caden and Cameron Windle, and Harlie, Maliyah, and Tate Larson; and a sister Cheryl (Tom) Anderson of Des Moines, IA. She was preceded in death by her parents and husband Dale on March 18, 2010.

A special thank you to the staff of Thornton Manor Nursing Center in Lansing, Iowa, who provided quality care and kindness to our family during these last few weeks. Also, a special thank you to the "Prairie Chicks", Darlene Wicklund, Violet Reetz, and Patsy Kerndt, who were her dearest and closest friends.