Farmer, Judith Lehman of Minneapolis passed away on February 14, 2018, after a year-long struggle with neuro-endocrine cancer. She was 82. Judy was a life-long leader and organizer who became the longest serving member of the Minneapolis School Board. Judy was born in 1935 in Denver, Colorado, the only child of Amer Lehman and Joy Kinkel Lehman. She attended elementary school in Denver and a one-room school in Idalia, Colorado, where she lived on her grandfather's homestead. She then moved to nearby Wray, Colorado. Growing up, she raised 4-H calves including a grand champion, Coronado. Judy was determined, stubborn and persistent, even in her teens. When a family friend boasted that he made the world's best fudge, she spent many hours developing a recipe that even he had to admit was better. It became a family Christmas favorite. In college at Stanford she majored in History and studied Russian, and met her future husband, Ted. Judy dedicated her life to public education, children's and social justice issues, and Democratic politics. She inherited her passion for politics from her father, and first became personally involved as a volunteer coordinator for Citizens for Kennedy in 1960. After college she took education courses and became a high school teacher. She taught social studies at the Taipei American School in Taiwan, in Seattle and in Sudbury, Massachusetts, before moving to Minnesota in 1968. She served as the director of the Southeast Cooperative Nursery School and then helped to plan and implement Southeast Alternatives (SEA), an innovative, federally supported choice program within the Minneapolis Public Schools. She was most deeply involved with the establishment of Marcy Open School, a component of SEA. There she worked as the parent and community resource coordinator in an office marked with big letters "OPOP" - Other People Other Places - that helped students go out into the community to learn about things they were interested in and invited people from the community to come into the school and tell students about what they did. In 1979 Judy ran for the Minneapolis School Board where she served for 27 years. At the state level she served a term as the president of the Minnesota School Boards Association, and at the national level chaired the Council of Great City Schools. She had awesome people skills, mobilized large numbers of volunteers for causes, and mentored many individuals who were new to public service. Judy was active in DFL politics, and in numerous campaigns, including service as the 5th District coordinator for Jessie Jackson's presidential campaign in 1988. She was a long time member of the League of Women Voters, the National Organization for Women, and the NAACP, Planned Parenthood, the Southern Poverty Law Center. She was on the board of Way to Grow, and after retiring from the school board, she headed Kids Voting Minneapolis. Judy had an insatiable curiosity about the world. After college she spent a year working in Denmark and traveling in Western Europe. Later adventures took her to East Asia, Southeast Asia and the Middle East. For her 50th wedding anniversary she organized a trip to Greece and Turkey. In 2012 she and Ted traveled around the world with the Semester at Sea Program. She is survived by her husband of 59 years Edward (Ted) Farmer, a daughter, Joy, a son, Edward (Ellen Gunnarsdottir), and two grandsons, Henry and Edward (Teddy). Plans for a memorial service are pending. In lieu of flowers, contributions can be sent to Way to Grow (125 W. Broadway Ave. Suite 110, Minneapolis, MN 55411) or the Southern Poverty Law Center (400 Washington Avenue, Montgomery, AL 36104).