February 5, 1945 – January 12, 2022

Judy Marie Wright, nee Wespetal, 76, of Friendswood, TX passed away January 12, 2022 peacefully at home surrounded by her family. She was born February 5, 1945 in Cuero, TX. She was an active member of United Methodist Church of Friendswood where she volunteered in the nursery and served as a Stephen Minister for many years.

Judy and her deceased husband Harley Millard Wright were married for 39 years and had 4 children, Shay Marie Robertson of League City, TX, twins Christopher Farrell Wright and Heather Anne Wright of Friendswood, and Mark Glenn Wright of Friendswood. She was “The BEST Nana” to 8 grandchildren (Anthony Wright, Cassandra Hagler, Madeline Robertson, Emory Robertson, Victoria Robles, Isabel Wright, Abigail Wright, Ezra Wright) and 2 great grandchildren (Oliver Hernandez and Francine Wright). She was very loved by her daughter in law, Leticia Wright, and son in law, Michael Robertson.

Judy was not a stranger to foreign soil and lived in Australia where the twins were born. Her sister, Janet Faulkner, of Moncks Corner, SC, accompanied Judy on her dream to trip to Ireland.  In spite of her newly diagnosed lymphoma, together they explored what would become her trip of a lifetime.

With her grandchildren, she showed her love by always making sure she had their favorite snack and juice boxes when they were visiting. Maddie recalls that she always had ice cream in the freezer. For Cassy, it was the hot tea. There were many trips made to the candy store at the mall, to the fabric and craft stores to buy material for crafts and quilts, and to the beach to collect shells. She often took the grandkids on shopping trips looking for that perfect “straight fashion” clothing item. Her home was always open for BBQ pool parties in the summer, complete with diving competitions and watermelon seed spitting contests. Winter was grapefruit time. There were so many grapefruits on her backyard trees, that strangers would come to the door and ask to buy them.  These were given to them of course, with a warm and happy smile.

Judy had two green thumbs and if asked how she grew something, she simply claimed she “just stuck it in the dirt”. If you ever had a grapefruit from one of her many trees in her backyard, you would be convinced she had a special gift. She grew avocado from seed and learned the art of making bonsai. She was exceptionally talented at caring for plumeria. She found that pulling weeds was actually very relaxing.

When not gardening, Judy stayed busy exploring a variety of arts and crafts. She dabbled in oil painting, pottery and ceramics, and paper flower making. Her hidden talent that she discovered while caring for Harley was quilting. She made so many quilts and passed on this love and skill to her family and others in the church.

Her love of the arts spilled over to music and theatre. December was the time for the Nutcracker Ballet. Phantom of the Opera and Riverdance ranked highly among her favorites.

Late in life, Judy discovered her hidden athletic ability at the YMCA with the ladies in her water aerobics class.

And last but not least, Nana was a FANTASTIC cook and baker. Mark proclaims that there was always an abundance of baked goods at home, most likely because she had just found a new recipe she just had to try. Isabel, Abigail, and Victoria fondly recall her lemon cookies made from scratch. Her peach and blackberry cobblers were blue ribbon worthy if you ask Anthony.  Some of her other requested specialties include Gnocchi soup, Rarebit, the classic Green Bean Casserole (Mark), Chicken Marbella (Shay), Lemon Meringue Pie and Strawberry Jello (Harley, Maddie, Emory, Mike), Stuffing (Heather) and Lasagna (unanimous, with Chris’ emphatic emphasis). She was also dabbling with making flavored vanillas to use in her baked items. Harley always said that she made the best glass of ice water. Although it seems simple, not everyone can make a salad and ice tea as sophisticated and interesting and delicious as Judy.