Wasco-Hood River-Multnomah County OR Archives Obituaries.....Johnson, Irvin D. October 17, 2005 ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/or/orfiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Ila L. Wakley iwakley@msn.com April 16, 2006, 10:05 pm The Dalles Chronicle, November 1, 2005 Irvin D. Johnson, a former resident of Lyle and Hood River, died at a foster home in Portland on Oct. 17, 2005. He was born in Fort Bragg, Calif., to Albert and Ethel Johnson. The family soon moved to Portland where they lived until the family bought property a few miles from Lyle, and established the family farm where Irvin Johnson grew up, along with his elder sister, Naomi, and younger brother, Sydney. His father was a sawyer for the lumber mill at Lyle, and also worked hard on the farm, which produced almost all their food, which meant a lot of chores for the children. In addition to his responsibilities at home, he attended and graduated from high school. Later, he attended the School of Pharmacy at Washington State College, graduating in 1932 as a pharmaceutical chemist, returning to complete his bachelor’s degree in science in 1936. About that time he proposed to Myrtle Johnson, who had also grown up in Lyle. His earliest job as a pharmacist was in Missoula, Mont., where he and his young wife moved. Later, he bought and ran his first store in College Place, Wash. There the couple had their first child, a daughter, Janice Myrtle. When she was 2 years old, they moved to Seattle, where he eventually owned a small chain of three Rexall drugstores. By 1949 he had grown weary of a busy city life that sometimes was very stressful. He and his wife decided to move back to Lyle and build a home near his parents. Not only did he help with the family farm, but he bought some registered Hereford breeding stock and had a go at cattle raising. He encouraged his daughter to join 4-H, and they both showed Herefords at the Klickitat County fair, bringing home some blue and purple ribbons. In 1952 he joined his brother, Syd, in a Shell Oil business in Bingen, Washington. From Bingen, he became the Shell Oil jobber in Hood River. The family moving to Hood River in 1955, where he diversified his business into service stations, a wholesale/retail tire outlet, and finally a restaurant. He and his wife designed and built their dream home at 1020 Rand Road. He would go up in the hills to dig out rocks for the massive fireplace that became the centerpiece of the home they loved so much. During this time he served a term as president of the Chamber of Commerce and was active in the Lions Club. His wife died in 1970 after a long battle against the ravages of diabetes. A couple years later, he married Martha Gross of White Salmon, and shared some good years until her death 10 years later. He remarried one more time, to Letha Fleck of Scappose, and welcomed her three sons to their home. He loved to sail, and for a while he and his wife greatly enjoyed sailing together, and often competed in sailboat races. They also bought and operated a small restaurant at 13th and Oak, “Johnson’s Red Delicious.” However, their marriage ended in divorce. He didn’t stop working after he retired. He loved working in his garden, taking pride in his flowers, fruit, and vegetables; and true to his upbringing, he canned much of his own produce well into his eighties. His favorite project, however, was building a stone wall around one perimeter of his garden. When he was 88, he fulfilled his lifelong dream of visiting Australia. For three months he traveled around both New Zealand and Australia, sometimes staying in youth hostels. In 2002 he moved into an assisted living facility in Hood River and sold his home. He gradually needed more care, and in October 2004 his daughter, Janice, arranged for him to move to a foster care home in Portland so she could be near him. He is survived by his daughter, Janice Johnson, and his sister, Naomi Jay. It was his wish that he be cremated and his ashes scattered on the Columbia River. A memorial service will be held in Hood River at the Asbury United Methodist Church, 616 State Street, on Sunday, Nov. 6, at 3 p.m. It is the family’s wish that, in lieu of flowers, donations be made to the American Diabetes Association in his name. Additional Comments: Written permission to reprint given by The Dalles Chronicle, The Dalles, Oregon, Dan Spatz, Editor (e-mail dated 3/7/2006). File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/or/wasco/obits/j/johnson1212gob.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.org/orfiles/ File size: 4.9 Kb