Abbie Joy Strodder Kleppa

Abbie Joy Stodder Kleppa, 88, of Lubbock and formerly of Chicago, Minneapolis and Valparaiso, IN passed away Monday, July 29, 2013 at her home.  Daughter of the late Iva Joy Doughty Stodder and Louis Thomas Stodder, she was also the great-granddaughter of Capt. Louis Napolean Stodder, Acting Master of the Civil War battleship the Monitor.  Joy was born in Billings, Montana April 23, 1925, but grew up in Minneapolis, graduating from Washburn High School in 1943, and from the University of Minnesota in 1948.  She married Norwegian chemist Ole Jakob Kleppa, a University of Chicago professor, on June 26, 1948.  They moved to Chicago, where they made their home in the Hyde Park community for almost 50 years.  In 1950 and again 1956, they lived in Ole’s native Norway, and in 1985, in Marburg, Germany.  In 1996 they moved into their Valparaiso vacation home, The Clearing and relocated to Lubbock in 2006.  Ole passed away in 2007.

Joy worked for many years as a Spanish teacher at Chicago’s Faulkner School and the American School of Correspondence. She later taught adult ESL classes with the City Colleges of Chicago.  She was a gracious, welcoming hostess to students and scientists from around the world.  Always curious, Joy loved to read, travel, learn foreign languages, and meet new people.  Spending time outdoors was another passion.  She was a hiker, gardener, swimmer and skier.  Joy and Ole’s love for the natural world, led them to give a portion of their Valparaiso property to the formation of the Moraine Valley Nature Preserve.  Joy took great pride in her family’s long-time New England and colonial heritage.

Joy and Ole have two children: Karen Joy Kleppa of Golå, Norway, and Abbie Lee Kleppa of Lubbock, TX.  Other close family members include son-in-law Haraldur Karlsson, and grandchildren, Karl Haraldsson, Eirik Haraldsson, and Eva Haraldsdottir.  Extended loved ones include cousins Terry Abady, Kim Osenbaugh, Gail Williams, Ginger Williams, Leslie Bauman, Toby Brandtman, Alyssia Krapfel, Zoe Clemens, as well as nieces and nephews, Pete Kleppa, Hans Kleppa, Per Kleppa, Eirik Lindahl, Anne Karin Lindahl, Marit Kleppa, Tone Århell, Johannes Hovda, Eli Margreta Haugen, Vigdis Gamst, and all of their families.  She leaves many good friends in Lubbock and around the world.

A memorial celebration of Joy’s life will convene at 1:30 p.m., Saturday, August 10, 2013 at the Carillon’s Neil Chapel in Lubbock.  A sister celebration will take place in Golå, Norway on the 10^th as well.