Born to Quaker parents Harold Kessinger and Ann Prodehl in Stamford, Connecticut on December 3, 1938, Judy Kessinger, along with her younger brother Tom Kessinger grew up in Ridgewood Friends Meeting in New Jersey where Judy was an active Junior Friend. She attended Earlham College, graduating in 1960. From Earlham she went to Yale Divinity School and moved away from Quakerism, first to the Presbyterian Church, next to the United Church of Christ, and finally, for 40 years, away from organized religion altogether. In 1969 she obtained a library science degree from Drexel University and then worked in the Library of Congress for twenty years.
In 1980 Judy married Arthur Maki, a widower with a 12-year-old daughter Mai. Judy became stepmother to Mai and eventually grandmother to Mai’s and her husband Ian’s two children Helena and Jonah. After retiring from their DC jobs, Judy and Art moved to the Seatle area to fulfill Art’s love of hiking and mountain climbing.
One of Judy’s and Art’s great pleasures was folk dancing. Both had wonderful costumes to wear as they participated in folk dance performances. Judy and Art also enjoyed coming into the city for symphony concerts as well as traveling. Being a librarian, Judy loved to read, and her home was filled with books.
Judy participated in continuing education programs at Edmonds Community College where she wrote an essay for a memoir class titled “How I Lost My Religion”. As she reflected on this topic, her interest in connecting with Friends was rekindled. She applied for membership first at the Ridgewood Friends Meeting, hoping that the membership, even at a distance, would result in a sense of connection and community. Over time she realized that Ridgewood Friends did not have the capacity to nurture distant members. Judy emailed the UFM office, and Donal referred her to Asia and Lee Bennet who helped with transportation from Mill Creek where Judy lived. She began attending both Adult Religious Education sessions as well as Meeting for Worship and transferred her membership to UFM where she became a member in May 2014.
After Art died in the mid-2000s, Judy moved to a retirement center in Lynnwood, hoping to continue classes at Edmonds Community College. A UFM care committee consisting of Amanda Franklin, Niki Albright and Louise Lansberry eventually met with Judy monthly for over a year before the pandemic interfered with further meetings.
Due to continuing health issues, in August 2021, Judy’s daughter Mai had Judy move to an assisted living facility in Kirkland, close to Mai’s home. Judy died there on January 30, 2023.
Celebration of Judy’s life took place at University Friends Meeting on May 21, 2023.