Jody Lynn Draznin

 Jody Lynn Draznin, beloved wife of Paul Smith, daughter of Jules and Shirley Draznin, sister of Dean and Michael Draznin, passed away early on May 8, 2025 surrounded by her loving family and friends at home in Fairfield, Iowa.

 A celebration of her life will be held at 3:00 p.m. Sunday, May 11, 2025 with a Vedic Service to follow at 4:00 p.m. at Behner Funeral Home in Fairfield. To view a live stream of Jody's services, click here. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Noah's Ark Animal Foundation in Fairfield and you may click to donate.

 Jody was born in Chicago, IL and in 1961 moved with her family to North Hollywood, CA. She attended Monlux elementary school, joined the Brownies and then the Girl Scouts, attended Robert A. Milliken Jr. High School and Ulysses S. Grant High School. At 16, she learned Transcendental Meditation, which she practiced daily for the rest of her life.

 She attended Sonoma State College and received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Maharishi International University. She became a Teacher of TM in 1981, and for years was a member of Maharishi’s Thousand Headed Mother Divine program. She worked as a recruiter at the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising in Los Angeles and following that as director of volunteers at the LA Superior Court Conservatorship Program. In Iowa, she was one of the all-time top telemarketers at Books Are Fun and had similar success as a recruiter for Human Factors International.

One little known fact: while living and working in Los Angeles, Jody also studied opera for a little over a year with a renowned voice teacher who had trained several famous classical and opera stars. He repeatedly was astonished by how quickly and profoundly her voice transformed into operatic over just months of training. He strongly encouraged her to continue formal opera training.

 Jody and Paul lived as a loving couple for over 20 years. They were dog parents to Bear and Bindi, and before that Jody was dog mom to Nebbish and Lucky.

 Jody loved life and loved to laugh, bringing joy to everyone she met. She had a zany sense of humor and an irreverent wit. Her family and friends will miss her delightful presence and cherish the time we were fortunate to have with her. May her memory be a blessing for happiness, laughter and love. We will miss her every day.