Betty Joanne Johnson

Betty Joanne Johnson, 88, of Overland Park, KS, passed away Tuesday, September 7, 2021, at Brookside Retirement Community. Private graveside services were held at Woodlawn Cemetery, Pomona. Betty was born October 22, 1932, north of Douglas, WY, on the family homestead, the daughter of Harry C. and Rebecca G. (Chandler) Miller. She graduated from Hot Springs High School in Thermopolis, WY with the Class of 1950. Her family moved from their ranch, where she would spend summers in a sheep wagon with a rifle and a box of books, on Owl Creek, near Thermopolis, Wyoming to Pomona, Kansas in 1950. She lived in Pomona until 1958. On January 28, 1951, Betty was united in marriage to Ross E. Johnson in Quenemo, KS. He preceded her in death on March 26, 1988. Betty continued her education at Ottawa University graduating in 1967 with a Bachelor of Science in Education. She graduated from UMKC in the early 1970’s with a Master’s in Psychology. Betty was employed as a 5th grade schoolteacher at Rosehill Elementary in Lenexa, KS, retiring in the early 1980’s. Upon her retirement as a teacher, she was recognized by the city of Lenexa with a “Betty Johnson Day”. She previously worked as a teller at Roeland Park State Bank in the early to mid-1960’s and Pomona State Bank in the early 1950’s. In the early 1950’s, Betty was a switchboard operator at Jayhawk Hotel in Topeka. She was an active member of the Westminster Presbyterian Church in Ottawa, until the family moved to Overland Park, Kansas, where she also taught Sunday school. Betty was a life member of the Pomona Chapter No. 305 Order of the Eastern Star. In Overland Park she was a member of the Neighborhood Baptist Church. Betty enjoyed traveling and her favorite destinations were Yellowstone Park, anywhere in Wyoming, Disneyland and Disney World. She was known for her baking and was an excellent cook. She also enjoyed needlepoint, making many Christmas stockings for her grandkids. An avid reader she enjoyed the books of Louis Lamour. She loved dogs, especially Dachshunds. Above all else, Betty loved the time with her grandchildren and family. She was also preceded in death by her son Russell Johnson; parents and two brothers, Gene Miller and Norman Miller and sister Sharon Anderson. Survivors include two children, Barbara J. Johnson of Tulsa, OK and James Ross Johnson of Lake Wabaunsee, KS; brother-in-law Charles Anderson of De Soto, KS; five grandchildren, Meg Fisher (Lynn Greene) of Santa Fe, NM, Benjamin C. Johnson (Katerina) of Overland Park, KS, Samuel R. Johnson (Rhina) of Harveyville, KS, Katie J. Johnson of Olathe, KS, and William R. Johnson also of Olathe; and four great grandchildren as well as numerous nieces and nephews.