Julie was born June 24th, 1947, in Chicago, the third child and only daughter of Edward and Virginia Behnke Tupper. The family moved to Oceanside, CA when she was just four years old. A few years after the move to Oceanside, tragedy struck for Julie and her brothers, Larry and Mike, when their mother died of a congenital heart condition at 35. Her father would go on to remarry his new wife Francis and Julie acquired her new stepsister, Diane. 

Julie attended St. Mary Star of the Sea Elementary School in Oceanside and the Academy of the Little Flower at Mission San Luis Rey for high school. For college, Julie first enrolled in Seattle University, where she remained for a year before returning to the San Diego area. She began working part-time with the marketing department of the San Diego Padres, took classes at San Diego State University, from which she later received a degree in business administration. She worked for a number of insurance companies before eventually joining Carl Warren & Co., a firm specializing in insurance claims settlements with major clients such as Costco and In & Out. She was the head of the company's San Diego office at the time of her retirement. As an insurance executive she never let her business get in the way of her family. Her professional life was always secondary to her home life as a devoted wife and loving mother.

She married Walter Claasen in 1974 and they adopted their only child Jennifer in 1979, she quickly became the center of their lives. The couple lived in Burbank and Glendale for a number of years before moving back to the San Diego area, where they lived in Penasquitos for many, many years.

Julie retired sooner than most and loved to travel, especially to Hawaii and Europe. She spent her time volunteering for senior centers and any other organizations that needed her time.

In 2015 she welcomed her only grandchild Lilah Julianne Dunkleberger and shortly after her arrival moved herself and Walter to San Marcos to be closer to their daughter and daughter’s family.

Julie was a humble, generous soul who will be missed by everyone that ever had the privilege of being in her life. She leaves behind her husband Walter, daughter Jennifer, granddaughter Lilah, brothers Mike and Larry, as well as nieces & nephews Ed, Jeremy, Melisa, Tori, Holly, Claire, Phillip and Mary.

A reception dinner will be held at Fairway Kitchen and Bar in Oceanside following the cemetery service. Please RSVP to Jennifer at JenniferDunkleberger@gmail.com if you plan to attend.