Jean Huffey
Jean Huffey, 94, of Waterville passed away peacefully May 4, 2026. Jean moved to Wellington Place in Decorah in 2022 and Creamery Creek in Viroqua, WI in October 2025.
Memorial services were held Friday, May 8 at St. Paul’s United Methodist Church in Waukon with Pastor Kim Gates and Pastor Laura Gentry officiating. Burial will take place at a later date. Memorials can be directed to Agrace Hospice or Veterans Memorial Hospital, Waukon.
Jean was born in rural Hawkeye January 5, 1932, to George and Delia Boess. She attended Iowa State Teachers College in Cedar Falls (1949-1950). After graduating, Jean taught at Waterville Elementary School. She married George Huffey April 10, 1953 and they were married for 63 years.
Jean taught on and off while raising her and George’s six children. Once their children were all in school, Jean returned to teaching full time. After she retired from teaching, she was a favorite substitute in the Waterville and Waukon school districts.
Jean and George crop farmed in rural Allamakee County. They also had dairy cows, hogs, beef cattle, chickens, and big gardens to feed their family. When they moved to the house on Elon, they kept a vegetable garden and Jean tended her beautiful flower beds which contained native flowers. Jean loved watching the wide variety of birds that visited her backyard.
Jean was active in politics, hosting the local Democratic Caucus at her house, and regularly engaging with candidates on issues.
Jean was a fierce advocate for LGBTQ rights and was very active in PFLAG. She attended many rallies and in 1993, she and her son, Brad, attended the March on Washington for LGBTQ Equal Rights and Liberation. Jean received hundreds of letters of thanks from people that she helped and supported during her years of activism on behalf of the LGBTQ community.
Jean was happiest when surrounded by family and friends. During holidays, everyone was welcome in their home and fed. The meal would include homemade treats of lefse, pickles, horseradish, meatballs, rosettes, and apple pie.
Jean and George shared their homemade pickles and horseradish with friends and strangers alike. She even sent some of her famous hickory nut sugar cookies to a stranger in Alaska when they contacted her after hearing her on an interview with NPR.
Jean never lost her sense of adventure. In 2008 at the age of 76 she traveled to Peru with her daughter Lisa’s family, where she rafted Category III whitewater and rode horses at an altitude of 13,000 feet. She went on several trips with Kerndt Brothers travel, going to places such as the Bahamas, Acapulco, Germany, Hawaii, Las Vegas, and San Diego.
Jean and George bowled in local leagues, played Euchre, and loved to dance. They enjoyed watching their children and grandchildren compete in sports, dance, and perform music. They taught their grandchildren how to hunt for mushrooms and pick hickory nuts.
The Iowa Hawkeyes were Jean’s favorite team to follow. She traveled to the Rose Bowl and the Big Ten basketball tournament.
Jean was the first woman church council president in her home church, read her devotions daily, and led Bible studies. Her faith was very important to her and directed her throughout her life.
Survivors include her children, Dawn Huffey, Marcia (Bruce Frost) Huffey, Lisa (Barry) Fruechte, and Bradley (Eliezer Burmudez) Huffey; her grandchildren, Amy Huffey, Mia Huffey, Emilie (Travis) Volkman, Isaac (Laura Noll) Bulman, Ayla (Jordan Vogt) Frost, Anders Frost, Betsy (Alberto) Whitlatch, Bart (Amairani) Fruechte, Jay (Jaquelyne) Fruechte, and Sophia Fruechte; 12 great-grandchildren; and one great-great-grandchild. Surviving brothers and sisters include her sister-in-law, Jo (George Jr.) Boess; her brother, Paul (Dorothy) Boess; and her brother, Alan (Doris) Boess.
She was preceded in death by her parents, George and Delia Boess; her brother, George Boess, Jr., and her sister, Donna (Lloyd) Robinson; her husband, George; her oldest son, Randall Huffey, and her oldest daughter, Nancy Huffey.
