Donald
Donald Lee Johnson
Donald Lee Johnson was born on October 12, 1939, in Akron, Ohio to Paul and Gladys Johnson. He passed away peacefully on August 4, 2023, in Scottsdale, Arizona. He was preceded in death by his beloved wife, Ethel. Left to honor his memory are his family, Katrina Johnson, Rebecca (Jim) Klufa, Daryl Johnson, Derek Johnson, Jack Johnson, and also numerous cousins, nieces, nephews, and family friends.
Don began working while he was in high school following the death of his father and helped support his mother. Some of these jobs included being a short-order cook, a sheet metal apprentice, and he also worked on a friction disk assembly line for automobile transmissions. In 1959, Don decided to join the United States Air Force and began a 28-year career that moved him both around the country and around the world. Don and Ethel married in 1967 and were blessed with 52 years together. Don often commented that he would not have been able to do everything he did in the military without Ethel by his side taking care of everything each time he was sent overseas. After retiring from the Air Force as a Chief Master Sergeant, Don worked in the private sector, first as an electronics instructor, and later as a technical writer and supervising engineer of product development for Arizona Instruments.
When Don found something that interested him, he wanted to learn all about it. That interest led to several hobbies over the years, some of which were helped along by the hobby shops on base while he was overseas including leatherwork and jewelry making. Don loved the beautiful world that God created and enjoyed camping and fishing, especially fly fishing. He even tied his own flies. It was an irritation to his children that they had to be quiet around the trout streams so they wouldn’t scare the fish, but now that is a fond memory along with so many others. In addition to knowing the best fishing techniques, Don was an archive of knowledge. We all relied on him for his guidance and advice on any number of subjects, and knew that he was always willing and able to provide exactly what we needed. He was remarkable in so many ways.
As much as Don loved his family, and loved to joke around, his love of God is what many will remember him by. He loved God’s word and wanted to not only study and understand it, but to also share it with others. He loved being in bible classes with others, studying on his own, and teaching others by both preaching and through his writings. (
https://montevistacoc.com/multimedia-speaker/don-johnson/
)
Don loved that he was able to help young people through the adopt-a-student program at Florida College, and together with Ethel, established an endowed scholarship program there to honor his friend Hoyt Houchen. At the time of his death, Don was a member of the Monte Vista Church of Christ.
A Memorial Service for Don will be held on Friday, August 11
th
, 2023, at 9:00 AM at Whitney & Murphy Bueler Mortuary, 14 W. Hulet Drive, Chandler, Arizona. A Visitation will be Thursday evening, August 10
th
, 2023, from 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM, and Friday morning from 8:30 AM to 9:00 AM at Whitney & Murphy Bueler Mortuary. Don’s body will be laid to rest at Valley of the Sun Cemetery, 10940 E. Chandler Heights Road, Chandler, Arizona, alongside his beloved wife, Ethel. Although we are profoundly saddened by our current circumstances, we rejoice that his spirit is resting in peace with a loving Father, and we have the hope of being together again one day.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests contributions be made to Sacred Selections, an organization that assists parents in the adoption process. (
https://sacredselections.org/
)
Don began working while he was in high school following the death of his father and helped support his mother. Some of these jobs included being a short-order cook, a sheet metal apprentice, and he also worked on a friction disk assembly line for automobile transmissions. In 1959, Don decided to join the United States Air Force and began a 28-year career that moved him both around the country and around the world. Don and Ethel married in 1967 and were blessed with 52 years together. Don often commented that he would not have been able to do everything he did in the military without Ethel by his side taking care of everything each time he was sent overseas. After retiring from the Air Force as a Chief Master Sergeant, Don worked in the private sector, first as an electronics instructor, and later as a technical writer and supervising engineer of product development for Arizona Instruments.
When Don found something that interested him, he wanted to learn all about it. That interest led to several hobbies over the years, some of which were helped along by the hobby shops on base while he was overseas including leatherwork and jewelry making. Don loved the beautiful world that God created and enjoyed camping and fishing, especially fly fishing. He even tied his own flies. It was an irritation to his children that they had to be quiet around the trout streams so they wouldn’t scare the fish, but now that is a fond memory along with so many others. In addition to knowing the best fishing techniques, Don was an archive of knowledge. We all relied on him for his guidance and advice on any number of subjects, and knew that he was always willing and able to provide exactly what we needed. He was remarkable in so many ways.
As much as Don loved his family, and loved to joke around, his love of God is what many will remember him by. He loved God’s word and wanted to not only study and understand it, but to also share it with others. He loved being in bible classes with others, studying on his own, and teaching others by both preaching and through his writings. (
https://montevistacoc.com/multimedia-speaker/don-johnson/
)
Don loved that he was able to help young people through the adopt-a-student program at Florida College, and together with Ethel, established an endowed scholarship program there to honor his friend Hoyt Houchen. At the time of his death, Don was a member of the Monte Vista Church of Christ.
A Memorial Service for Don will be held on Friday, August 11
th
, 2023, at 9:00 AM at Whitney & Murphy Bueler Mortuary, 14 W. Hulet Drive, Chandler, Arizona. A Visitation will be Thursday evening, August 10
th
, 2023, from 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM, and Friday morning from 8:30 AM to 9:00 AM at Whitney & Murphy Bueler Mortuary. Don’s body will be laid to rest at Valley of the Sun Cemetery, 10940 E. Chandler Heights Road, Chandler, Arizona, alongside his beloved wife, Ethel. Although we are profoundly saddened by our current circumstances, we rejoice that his spirit is resting in peace with a loving Father, and we have the hope of being together again one day.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests contributions be made to Sacred Selections, an organization that assists parents in the adoption process. (
https://sacredselections.org/
)
To order memorial trees or send flowers to the family in memory of Donald Lee Johnson, please visit our flower store.
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