Julius Allen “Judd” Krabbenhoeft
Julius Allen “Judd” Krabbenhoeft
Cedar Rapids
Judd Krabbenhoeft, 91, of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, passed away on Monday, March 27, 2023, following a brief illness.
Judd was born on July 29, 1931, in Davenport, Iowa, to Verda (Thorpe) and Ralph Krabbenhoeft. He attended Davenport High School, graduating in 1949. After participating in R.O.T.C. while in high school he joined the recently
established U.S. Air Force in 1950, spending much of his time during the Korean conflict stationed in Germany at the Furstenfeldbruck U.S. Air Force Base west of Munich. He was a Staff Sergeant working mostly in the photography lab where he developed his lifelong hobby. After returning home from Germany, he started work at Northwestern Bell, initially in Davenport and then Cedar Rapids where he would work for the next 32 years. In 1956 he married Nancy Evelyn Waterman, a nurse at St. Luke’s Hospital in Cedar Rapids. They had three children and lived near Solon, Iowa, for 15 years. Nancy preceded him in death in 1975. In June 1979 Judd married Rose Marie Shanahan in Ely, Iowa, and they made their home in Hiawatha and then Cedar Rapids until Rose’s passing in 2015.
Judd was an active member of St. John’s Lutheran Church in Ely since 1963 only slowing down once his health no longer allowed him to make the drive from Cedar Rapids. He was a lifetime member of the VFW in Hiawatha as well as the former American Legion Hanford Post 5 in Cedar Rapids. He was also a longtime member of the Telephone Pioneers of America retirement community and participated in many of their charitable events.
In addition to photography, Judd’s other hobbies included league bowling with his friends and co-workers, hand coloring black and white photos, creating stained glass artwork and windows, teaching his daughters to fish and ice skate, painting every house he ever lived in and taking meticulous care of his cars.
In his later years, he and Rose traveled a great deal to visit their children and other family and friends from California to New Mexico, to Florida and Washington. Often these journeys were made by car, it seems a love of long-distance driving was something he inherited from his parents. He also made a return trip to Germany to revisit his old stomping grounds and enjoy one more Oktoberfest. Several summer trips with his children to Lake Okoboji were legendary.
His family includes his children with Nancy: Julie (husband Ted), Carol and Dale; and Rose’s children: Kathy (husband Terry), Teri, Mike and Linda (husband Jim); his grandchildren, Elizabeth (husband David), Rosa, Madeline, Daniel, John and Drew; and great-grandchild, Jocelyn.
Judd was a devoted husband, dedicated and generous father and a steadfast friend.
The family would like to give special thanks to the staff at The Keystones of Cedar Rapids and The Views of Marion for their kind and thoughtful care of Judd over the past several years.
Please join us at a memorial service celebrating his life at 2 p.m. Monday, May 15, at Cedar Memorial Park Funeral Home in Cedar Rapids.