Vivian Ross Johnson

Vivian Ross Johnson

1917-2015

Vivian Ross Johnson, former resident of Ravenwood, Missouri, was a descendant of some of the earliest settlers in the area. She died in Beaverton, Oregon on Saturday, September 26, 2015, at 98.

Vivian Frances Ross was born on May 7, 1917 in Ravenwood, to Simon Peter and Maud Evans Ross, first of their three children, and the last surviving member of the family. Her brother, Stanley, a financial analyst, died at age 90 in 2009. Their younger brother, Sterling, a Naval fighter pilot in WWII, was lost in nighttime action above his aircraft carrier in Leyte Gulf, the Phillippines.

Vivian graduated from Ravenwood High School and attended Northwest Missouri State where she met William Orval Johnson. They were married in 1937 and made their first home in Clinton, Missouri, where he began his teaching/coaching career. After Orval’s WWII service as a naval CPO, they returned to Clinton where he resumed his career.

They had two children: Randall and Deborah. The little family lived in a number of different cities and states while Orval’s career progressed from high schools to teaching/coaching in college. After his untimely death, Vivian lived and worked in Santa Barbara, California until a few years after she retired when she left the rush of city life for the quiet, idyllic Mt. Angel community of Oregon. As age began to take a toll, she moved to Beaverton, Oregon to be nearer her children, and lived there actively and contentedly until heart problems became troubling a year or so ago.

Her life ended quietly at home on Saturday morning, September 26. She leaves a son, Randy, a daughter, Deborah Strandskov, a grandson, Kai Strandskov and one cousin, Rex Kirkbride, in Georgia.

She was a voracious reader, a tireless traveler, a dedicated volunteer for worthy causes, and she never missed a chance to return to Ravenwood for a reunion or other celebration. She made friends wherever she went, and she kept them for life.