Kathleen (Kathy) Ann Judge (née Garahan) passed away peacefully on Sunday, Dec. 11 in Dallas, Texas. She was predeceased by her husband of 52 years, James (Jim) J. Judge, in August 2020. Kathy was born at Fort Jackson in Columbia, South Carolina on July 20, 1943, the first child of Tom and Kate Garahan. During her first year she moved with her mother back to Richmond Hill, Queens, New York while her father trained troops for the final push from France into Germany. He embarked for Europe in September 1944 and she was not to see him again until December 1945. She was joined by a sister in 1945 and after the war by five brothers. The family moved to Long Island as part of the post war migration to the suburbs, where she happily spent the remainder of her childhood and college years.
Kathy was very proud to be the oldest child in the family and the oldest of 25+ first cousins. She is survived by her sister, Ann Lemley (John), and brothers, Peter Garahan (Maryam), Patrick Garahan (Mitzi), Terence Garahan (Bonnie Shelley), Edmund Garahan (Barbara), and Frank Garahan as well as ten nieces, one nephew and numerous great-nieces and nephews.
Kathy was a motivated and bright student at St. Anne’s Elementary School, Sacred Heart Academy (high school), and Hunter College, where she received her bachelor’s degree in nursing. After college she spent two years as a Public Health Nurse in Nassau County on Long Island, a position that made her proud for her entire career. She moved to Boston to work in psychiatric nursing at Mass General Hospital for two years and moved on to Vermont where she worked for Rutland Mental Health for 10 years as a counselor. She started in private practice working with a psychiatrist and eventually opened her own counseling practice after completing an MSW degree at Adelphi University in 1981. She broadened her career somewhat in 2006 to 2007 when she became a certified professional coach, having completed a certificate in executive and professional coaching. Kathy’s goal was to help other people help themselves, and she spent her professional life doing just that.
A major part of Kathy’s motivation for making the move to Vermont was meeting her lifelong partner and love of her life, Jim Judge. Kathy and Jim built a house in Killington just off the access road to the ski area and immersed themselves as year-round residents in the life of the mountain. They loved Vermont and the people who became their friends. Kathy loved her “Garahan Family” and enjoyed the fact that two of her brothers moved to Vermont, one staying for decades, which provided some closer family ties. She was always interested in what her siblings and their families were doing and was a devoted sister and aunt. She and Jim relocated to Dallas in fall 2020 to be near her brother Ed and family. While it was difficult to leave Vermont, they were both grateful to Ed, Barbara, and their children for helping them and supporting them during these final years. Kathy will be missed and remembered fondly by everyone in the family.
