Roxana Jo Fudge

Roxana (Roxy) Jo Fudge, 77, a Storm Lake fixture for 45 years and current resident of Oaknoll Retirement Community in Iowa City, passed away on Sunday, May 29, 2022, as a result of injuries sustained in a tragic tandem bicycling accident on March 30^th in Tucson, Arizona.

Celebration of her life will be 6:30-9:30 PM, Friday, September 9, 2022, at the Park Lodge at Terry Trueblood Recreation Area (Main Building) 579 McCollister Blvd, Iowa City, Iowa. The family invites you to join them for this open house event. Refreshments will be served. 

A Church service with Funeral rites will be 10:00 AM, Sunday, September 11, 2022, at All Saints Episcopal Church, 121 West Marina Road, Storm Lake, Iowa. Guest are invited for coffee and cookies following the service.

A Celebration of Life, 1:30-3:30 PM afternoon tea reception open house and 3:30-5:00 PM, program and musical tributes, Sunday, September 11, 2022, Cherokee Community Center Auditorium, 530 West Bluff, Cherokee, Iowa.

Condolences can be sent to 2660 N Scott Blvd #3-34, Iowa City, Iowa 52245. Beatty-Peterseim Funeral, Cremation Care and Monument Services is caring for Roxana and her family.

Memorial donations made in her honor are welcomed to any of the organizations she was associated with.

The outpouring of grief from around the world is a testament to the values of joy, hospitality, caring, and adventure that Roxy embodied throughout her life. Donations made in her honor are welcomed to any of the organizations she was associated with.

Born on December 4, 1944, to Charlotte Elizabeth and Gerald Fudge of Pittsfield, Illinois, she was raised on a 100-year farm and graduated from Pittsfield High School. In 1969, she married (and later divorced) Jeffrey Perrill and had two children, Geoffrey and Elizabeth.  On September 6, 1992, she was united in marriage to Lee Thorson at All Saints Episcopal Church in Storm Lake, Iowa. Roxy considered her children and grandchildren to be her greatest legacy. She was proud of their accomplishments and careers, Geoff’s indominable and adventurous spirit and Elizabeth’s love of art and preserving history. But, in the end, she was proud of the strong and loving adults they had become.

Roxy was a Registered Nurse and received her Bachelor of Science in Nursing in 1969 from the University of Missouri. Roxy practiced nursing in Missouri, London, India, Pakistan, on the Semester at Sea program, in Storm Lake at the Buena Vista Regional Medical Center, each level of the Storm Lake Public Schools, and as a home health nurse. Her compassion and vitality were comforting to many. She also taught nursing at the Iowa Central Community College, inspiring a new generation of nurses.

Roxy was an active member and supporter of many organizations including P.E.O. Sisterhood (Philanthropic Educational Organization), Cosmo Club, Questers, the Cherokee Symphony, the Cherokee Community Theater, P.I.G.S (Paired Iowans Going Somewhere) cycling group, and the Iowa Democratic Party. Growing up she was active in 4-H and participated in events that fed her love of civic engagement. Roxy ran polling sites in Storm Lake for decades, volunteered extensively in her community, and spearheaded a hand-embroidered dining room seats project to commemorate the founding and major buildings of Buena Vista University (BVU) in Storm Lake, Iowa. 

In her religious life, Roxy used her energy and skills to help found and construct the current All Saints Episcopal Church in Storm Lake. She embroidered and sewed vestments, banners, and altar linens to celebrate the peace brought through spirituality. She was renowned for her homemade cookies which were served with after church refreshments and for the many musical groups of which she was a part. As a cellist, Roxy played in the Cherokee Symphony which was conducted by her husband, Lee Thorson. During symphony breaks, everyone looked forward to seeing what new treat Roxy had baked and theatre members rehearsing next door would sneak in to see if there were extra cookies to go around. As a skilled seamstress, she assisted with creating and repairing theatre costumes.

From progressive dinners with BVU Faculty to family dinners at home, Roxy’s love of cooking, fellowship, and entertaining were some of her defining features. She taught international cooking courses to BVU students and relished the opportunity to partake in cuisines from around the world or right here in Iowa. On RAGBRAI’s, of which she did over twenty-five, she would taste test pies, cinnamon rolls, and entrees. A church dinner or a beautifully cooked meal created by a friend were all opportunities to celebrate for Roxy. Please look for ways to extend kindness and joy to those around you, to those you do not know, and to our world, to be inspired by the legacy of Roxy Fudge, a life well-lived.

Roxy is survived by her husband Lee Thorson of Iowa City, Iowa; her sister Charlotte Gray and husband Steven Gray of Angier, North Carolina; her son Geoffrey Perrill and his partner, Darcy Sanford of Iowa City, Iowa; her daughter Elizabeth Perrill and her husband Laurent Estoppey of Greensboro, North Carolina; and her grandchildren Elizabeth Jane (Janie) Perrill, Geoffrey William (Will) Perrill, Mathilda Noluthando Perrill-Estoppey; and step-grandchildren Justine Estoppey and Wim Flückiger. She is preceded in death by her parents, infant sister Krista Kay Fudge, and brother Curtis Fudge.