Obituaries

Eugenia (Jody) May Eugenia (Jody) May, a tenacious resident of Wyoming Valley, passed away in the wee hours of Thanksgiving morning.  She was the second child born to Judge James Harrison May and Eugenia (Sproul May) on September 2, 1941. Jody took an eclectic approach to schooling, attending multiple boarding schools along the East Coast.  When she turned 18, her love of music led her to New York for the beginning of the Bluegrass/Folk Music revolution.  She was an accomplished singer/musician whose love of music never waned.  Jody followed her friends Paul and Sara Prestopino to Madison where she began attending classes at the UW.  Through Paul and Sara she met many other up and coming musicians like Rodney F. Moag.  She sang backup for the Mitchells (later known as the Chad Mitchell Trio) at festivals and on a record, and even met the young Bob Dylan April 22, 1962, during a show at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. Jody met and supported a plethora of musicians throughout her life. After a brief union with R F Moag, she bore her only child Robin. She and Robin moved to Wyoming Valley for a couple of years. Being the nomad she was, Jody moved them over the years to California, Colorado, Minnesota, and even spent a year camping/traveling across the West and Canada.  Returning to Wisconsin in 1971, she became interested in farming, moving to the Dodgeville area to begin a SPF Hog operation with like-minded folks in a cooperative.  She was able to purchase her own 60 acre subsistence farm in Wyoming Valley in 1976, where she and her then husband began breeding Scotch Highland cattle, striving to develop her own bloodline. During her travels Jody began creating quilts with beautiful applique scenes on them.  They were a source of pride and joy for her, even winning some awards throughout her life.  Being a fabric artist/quilt maker, she was hired at Lands’ End.  Jody worked there for the next 25 years.  She started in phone sales, became a lead and trainer (teaching other farm women to use computers), then spending her final years as a specialty shopper.  Jody was a fiercely independent, gregarious person who enjoyed surrounding herself with an eclectic group of people.  Her annual Twelfth Night and Summer Solstice parties were renowned! Jody was also known for her human rights and emergency relief support work throughout her life. In true nomad fashion, she always continued traveling.  On one trip, she took the Queen Elizabeth II to UK, the Orient Express to Russia and the Trans Siberian Railway to China, then flew home via Italy.  In 2004 and 2005 she made two trips to visit friends in India and Nepal.  She always formed friendships that last to this day. Upon her retirement, she continued to travel, as well as focusing her attention on art and her two granddaughters. After a series of strokes Jody moved from her beloved farm to Greenway Terrace Assisted Living and entered hospice care at Greenway Manor in January, 2023. Jody was known for her brazen approach to life and will be sorely missed.  She was preceded in death by both her parents; by her only sibling, Honorable Judge Harrison May; two husbands; the father of her child; and many dear friends.  She is survived by her daughter Robin Moag-May; her granddaughters Catherine Hustad (Belleville), Sonora Standafer (Josh Drews) of Yelm, Washington; her “Tribal Son” Jeff Rodgers; and four great-grandchildren, Carter and Ziva Hustad, Jacob and Kaylee Drews. A memorial service will be held on December 2, 2023, from 2:30 to 3:30 p.m. at the Spring Green Community Church, 151 E. Bossard Street, Spring Green, officiated by Paster Kendall Harger.  A final Twelfth Night gathering in her honor is being planned for January 6, 2024, in Madison.  For details about this gathering, please send an email inquiry to mzjodymay@gmail.com Online condolences available at www.staffordfuneralhomes.com  The Richardson-Stafford Funeral Home is assisting the family with the arrangements.