Judy Kathryn Sipe, 80, passed away on September 7, 2020 at home surrounded by close friends and family.  Judy was born on October 25 ^th , 1939 in Springfield, Missouri to Denton and Kathryn (Gilmore) Smith. Judy grew up in Springfield, attending Central High School where she was a member of the Kiltie Drum and Bugel Corp, and was a member of the first graduating class of Parkview High School.  She went on to attend the University of Missouri, where she was a member of Pi Beta Phi sorority.  After college, Judy married Thomas R. Sipe, and they spent a year in San Francisco while her husband attended Naval officer's training before returning to her beloved Springfield to raise 3 children.

Judy accomplished much in her life and she always worked to better the community in which she lived.  In 1977, she was appointed by the Governor to the Missouri Arts Council which broadens the growth, availability, and appreciation of the arts in Missouri.  While serving on the board of Reading is Fundamental she was instrumental in encouraging the establishment of Springfield elementary school libraries.  While on the board of the Junior League of Springfield, she served as the director of the committee to open The Plaid Door Thrift Shop.  It became one of the League's top 10 most profitable stores nationwide. To provide merchandise, she requested donations from members in alphabetical order on a monthly basis.  Always a bottom line driven manager, shortly after the store opened an insurance salesman tried to sell fire insurance for the shop and when Judy declined, he asked "what will you do if you lose your inventory in a fire?"  "Well", Judy replied, "I guess I would call in the other half of the alphabet".

Judy was also active in the Democratic party for many years, hosting fundraisers for various candidates to support the causes she believed in.

Judy had a personality and spark that left an impression on all who met her, both personally and professionally.  She was loved by many and was a true friend. She was proudest of her three grandchildren, Eleanor Ruscitti, Nicholas Sipe, and Nathan Sipe.

However, her greatest passion was food.  After her youngest child went away to college, Judy embarked on a 25 year career as Chief Culinary Officer for the Food Channel and Noble Communications, that led her from Springfield to Chicago, New York and Los Angeles as well as across the globe, developing new food concepts for some of the world's largest food and restaurant conglomerates. She had overall responsibility for all culinary services, managing a team that included professional chefs, food scientists, new product development specialists and nutritionists.  She was a pioneer in her field, and a forerunner of women professionals in food service. Her work has been featured in a variety of publications, including Food Arts, Nation's Restaurant News, The Chicago Tribune, The New York Times, and featured in a segment on Good Morning America .

Her dedication, passion and creativity for all things food has been passed on to many of her friends and their children, as well as her love for entertaining and design. She felt the gathering together of those she loved to share good food was the most beautiful form of friendship .

Judy is survived by her sons, Thomas Sipe (Linda) of Cypress CA, and John Sipe, her daughter Kathryn (Thomas) Ruscitti of Chicago, IL and her three grandchildren, Nicholas Sipe, Nathan Sipe, and Eleanor Ruscitti.  She is also survived by her sister Ann O'Connell (Dan), her brother Allen Smith, her brother-in-law Phil Bowman (Diana), nieces Heather Hollifield, (Colby), and Becky Darden (David), and nephew Denton Bowman (Shannon) as well as many lifelong friends. She was preceded in death by her parents, Denton and Kathryn Smith, her sister, Rebecca Bowman, her grandmother Hannah Gilmore, her niece Eleanor O'Connell Ducret, and her nephew Mathew O'Connell.

The family wishes to send a special thank you to Laura and Ross Martin, who cared so diligently for Judy over the years and to all of those who have cared for Judy during her illness these last weeks.  We are also grateful to our many friends and family for their support.

In lieu of flowers, the family would be pleased if memorial gifts in Judy's name are made to Ozark Food Harvest, 2810 N. Cedarbrook Ave, Springfield, Mo 65803; Reading is Fundamental, PO Box 11253, Springfield, Missouri, 65808 or the charity of your choice.

With current concern over illness and gatherings, the family has decided to postpone a memorial service until a later date.  Online condolences may be left at gormanscharpf.com.