BRUNSWICK – Judith “Judy” (Morgan) Conant, 83, passed away peacefully on Dec. 18, 2023, at Mid Coast Hospital. Judy was born in Portland on March 9, 1940, the only child of William and Dorothy Morgan. She grew up in Topsham, surrounded by extended family.
As a child, she studied dance, piano, and loved to sing. Judy was immensely proud that she sang live on the radio when she was 16. She studied nursing at the University of Maine before leaving college to marry her first husband, settling in Wakefield, R.I. While raising six children, she graduated from Rhode Island College with a degree in early childhood education. The local newspaper ran an article and a photo of Judy surrounded by all six kids on graduation day.
Judy moved back to Maine in 1973 after her marriage ended. There, she met and fell in love with Thornton “Coke” Conant. They married in February 1974, blending their families, Coke with three children, Judy with six. Their son was born later that year, making it a family of 10 children. “Yours, mine, and ours” as she would often say. They bought a home in Brunswick and remained there together until Coke’s passing in 2011.
Judy was a social butterfly, enjoying the company of her family, friends, and sorority sisters. She loved music and could be heard singing throughout the day. Spontaneous dance parties would break out in the living room with Judy teaching everyone the Lindy Hop. She bragged that she painted her 30-foot living room with a two-inch brush after being defeated by the roller. Judy and Coke hosted a neighborhood New Year’s Eve bingo party, awarding prizes and serving individual pizzas to the delight of everyone involved.
She enjoyed crafting, and liked to crochet and sew by hand, creating gifts each year for the holidays. Judy and Coke began gifting his homemade wooden blocks in cloth block bags which Judy sewed after the birth of their first grandchild. It became a tradition for each new grandchild to receive a bag of blocks. She was known as a notorious sweet tooth, and the grandchildren took full advantage of it. Judy loved being a grandmother so much that she treated other children as if they were her own grandchildren.
As an only child, Judy enjoyed her alone time, often curling up for hours with a book or watching a movie by herself. A voracious reader, Judy collected books and made sure her children did as well. A movie fanatic, she took a job at Home Vision Video, as Coke would say, to simply collect movies. She shared her love of movies with her children and grandchildren. Her vast movie collection became a lending library with its own catalogue.
Throughout her life, Judy’s best friend and confidante was her mother. They spoke every day. One of her favorite places was her aunt’s cottage at Stover’s Point in Harpswell where she spent time with her mother and extended family.
Judy was predeceased by her beloved mother and father; and her husband of 37 years, Coke.
She leaves behind her seven children, David Very and his wife Lisa, Jennifer Hudson and her husband Jeffrey, Nancy Morin, and her husband James, Mark Very, Michael Morgan and his wife Rebecca, Heather DelRossi and her husband Steven, and William Conant; her three stepchildren, Scott Conant and his wife Laurie, Lisa Laney, and Stephen Conant; and her nine grandchildren, seven step-grandchildren; and step-great-grandchildren.
The family thanks the staff at Dionne Commons, Coastal Shores, and Horizons Living and Rehabilitation for the love and care Judy received for more than eight years.
To offer condolences and share fond memories please visit http://www.brackettfh.com to view Judy’s online memorial.
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