Joyce 'Peach' Graeff, 81

Compassionate and dedicated servant and friend to the community of Bigfork, Peach from Bigfork was called to her eternal home on May 24, 2024; her room was ready.

She was born Dec. 13, 1942, in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, to Arthur Bung and Frances Germann. She was the youngest of four, and, at birth, her father lovingly called her Peach, which stuck with her throughout her life. She grew up on a dairy farm and lost her mother at age 15. From that time, she took on the responsibility of cooking, cleaning, and caring for her family.

Immediately following high school, she moved to Rockford, Illinois, where she attended St. Anthony Hospital School of Nursing. It was here that she fell in love with nursing and emergency medicine. Her tenure at St. Anthony’s included the role of Head Nurse in the Emergency Department. After many rewarding years, she retired from nursing in 1984. During her nursing school days, she started her famous holiday Tom and Jerry parties, which continued for 50 festive years.

Peach and Gary married on May 25, 1979, and they were known to be "attached at the hip," throughout their 45 years together. They started a successful office refreshment business. They joined the Harlem Roscoe Fire Department, where she became a paramedic and Gary an Emergency Medical Technician. She enjoyed teaching and sharing her knowledge with other budding EMTs, and she and Gary developed the chaplain program there.

She always said she and Gary were "led" to the Flathead Valley, where they moved in 1998, after seeing an article about the magical Christmas celebrations in the village of Bigfork. Peach loved the true meaning of Christmas and thoroughly enjoyed the season and all the decorations that came with it. She owned over 600 Santa Clauses of different shapes and sizes and loved decorating to the hilt at Christmas time. Peach and Gary enjoyed being Bigfork Elves for over 25 years, both decorating and donating many trees for the village decor.

They immediately felt at home in Bigfork and quickly found their niche in the Flathead Valley. Here they joined the Bigfork Fire Department as chaplains and dedicated themselves to supporting the community during some of their most challenging moments.

Peach was a great advocate for women’s healthcare and encouraged everyone she encountered to have advanced directives for healthcare in place. She survived breast cancer in 2007. In 2021, she was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, and despite the challenges she faced, she always maintained her signature smile and her faith in Jesus. She was active in Bible studies and a prayer warrior for many.

She was preceded in death by her sister, Faye Folman.

She is survived by her loving husband, Gary; stepdaughters, Kristen (Rick) Coufal and Carey Johnston; grandchildren, Nathan, Anna, and Natalie Coufal and River and Bodi Johnston; brothers, Ken (Barbara) Bung and Jim (Linda) Bung, along with nieces, nephews, extended family, and many beloved friends.  

A memorial will begin at 11 a.m. on Aug. 1, at Crossroads Christian Fellowship Church. In lieu of flowers, donations in her name may be made to the Bigfork Fire Department Building Fund.