Seven years ago, we lost an incredible leader, citizen, and friend in Judy Baar Topinka.

This year, the Judy Baar Topinka Charitable Foundation is releasing the following full video prepared about Judy in honor of her wonderful life. This video is often used during presentations about the book, Just Judy, A Citizen and Leader for Illinois, for school groups, book signings, and educational conferences. Enjoy the video and remember an incredible lady.

Judy was a model for all of us demonstrating that anyone with passion, drive, and hard work can triumph in the face of great odds. Just like Judy, you can take on the establishment and make changes which are good. Like Judy, you may not always win, but you should never give up. Judy Baar Topinka’s life has solid lessons for all of us today and for future generations. She is a true role model for everyone.

Paperback
Spring 2018 Release (March/April)
ISBN #: 978-0-9983282-2-5 (softcover/pbk.)
8” x 10”, 101 pages

E-book
Spring 2018 Release (April/May)
ISBN #: 978-0-9983282-3-2 (Ebook)

Retail Price: $16.95
Publisher: Hilton Publishing Company
Publication Year: 2018

Order From Amazon

Order from The Publisher

Books will be shipped beginning April 6, 2018. Orders will be fulfilled in the same order in which they were received.

About the Book

Meet Judy Baar Topinka—persistent, creative, and dedicated to making the world a better place. Judy started out life much the same as you, going to school, growing up with friends, and embracing family. Like many today, she also had to learn the ways of a new country as a first-generation immigrant. Through education and tenacity, she placed herself on a history-making path, impacting the lives of millions during her career in public service.

In Just Judy, we watch her grow from child to adult to wife, mother, state politician, member in the Illinois House of Representatives, and finally to the office of Illinois Comptroller. She fought many battles as a pioneering woman in politics, but she persisted. Her experiences shaped who she was and what she stood for—heritage, public service, tolerance, life-long learning, honesty, respect, and courage. Just Judy captures the whole complicated challenge of staying true to yourself and will stir you to live with intentionality and make a difference in today’s rapidly-changing world.

Judy was blunt, pragmatic, unfailingly cheerful and energetic, and always willing to put politics aside to find common-sense solutions that made a difference for the people of Illinois.” President Barack Obama

From the Author

My hope is that when you read about Judy Baar Topinka, you will see many qualities of her character and examples from her life that you can adopt in your own life.

JUDY BAAR TOPINKA’s inspiring life provides everyone—young and old, within Illinois as well as outside the state—a true legacy of good government, bipartisanship, ethics, advocacy, candor, and kindness. Demonstrating that anyone with passion, drive, and hard work can triumph in the face of great odds, her story is about a woman who took on the establishment and succeeded as no other woman had in Illinois. She didn’t always win, but she never gave up, whether as a child, mother, student, journalist, legislator, or state-level leader.

In Our Blog

Landmarks Illinois WWI Monuments of Illinois Database

November 12, 2021

The new Landmarks Illinois WWI Monuments of Illinois Database has been published. It is an extensive online resource of historic World War I monuments and memorials throughout the state. Many thanks the Pritzker Military Foundation for its generous support that made the database possible! Explore the database to learn about the historic doughboy statues, plaques,…

Continue Reading Landmarks Illinois WWI Monuments of Illinois Database