Jeannette Dorothy Johnson

Jeannette Johnson passed away in the comfort of her home on December 27, 2024 at the young age of 92 years. Jeannette was born in Wadena Saskatchewan, the youngest of 3 older sisters (Olive, Dolly, Shirley) and 3 brothers (Douglas, Roy, Ritchie) all whom have preceded her in death. Jeannette grew up on a rural farm and told a story about how she lost a shoe in a haystack as a little girl and that meant her whole family could not afford jam over the winter. She left Saskatchewan for British Columbia at the age of 14 and always said she would not return because she hated winter but loved jam.

Jeannette worked on a switchboard, which to all those young people is how phone calls used to be made in the 1940s. She lived with a roommate in a small apartment in New Westminster. She always loved to get dressed up to the 9s and there are many photos of her in tailored pink and black polka dot dresses and teal suits. She never met a hat she didn’t like (although we didn’t always agree). This is when she met Leonard, her beloved husband and they were married in August 1953 at the young age of 19.

Jeannette and Leonard settled in a home in Surrey with a gigantic lawn and to die for marigold shag carpet. Jeannette really enjoyed keeping a tidy home and she had the avocado appliances of everyone’s dreams in the 1970s. She loved hosting large family gatherings and cooking for all those people. We think she had kids so she never had to wash a dish. Her homemade donuts she made for the neighborhood kids are the stuff legends are made of.

Jeannette worked when her children were growing up and made said children do many household chores that they lamented daily. She worked for many years at Reitman’s and true to her love of fashion just loved helping to set up new stores, creating window displays and she organized fashion shows in the mall. Later in life she taught typing on a typewriter and eventually typing on computers.

Jeannette and Leonard were avid campers and spent many years when their children were young at Missezula Lake. They purchased a property there and built their dream cabin after Jeannette got tired of sleeping in a tent and listening to Leonard’s snoring. They spent many wonderful years enjoying all the things Missezula had to offer with family and friends. Their beloved dog, Dandy, loved it so much there he ran away every time they packed up the car to leave.

Following the death of her beloved husband, Jeannette sold her home in Surrey, gave away all her pots and pans and moved to a little condominium in White Rock. She declared that she would no longer be cooking dinners but quickly realized that her family would be quite upset if she did that so she had to buy all new pots and pans. Jeannette made so many friends in White Rock and during this time she traveled to many places (Hawaii, Mexico, China) and also enjoyed cross country skiing, bowling, golfing and wine tasting. No one could keep up with her!

Jeannette was very involved in the BC Schizophrenia Society and made many friends through her charitable work with this organization. She was a fierce and dedicated mother to her son Arnie, who suffered from mental illness for most of his life.

To the shock and dismay of her family, Jeannette sold her condo in White Rock and moved to Walnut Grove in Langley where she lived for 35 years. Once we got used to not being right across from the ocean, we all grew to love this house too. Jeannette was very involved in the community of Chartwell Green and loved helping with the newsletters and winning at Bridge Club. Two of her grandchildren lived with her there while they went to school and only one of them almost drove the car through her kitchen window (we never told her about that!).

She will be dearly missed and is survived by her children, Corrine Plunkett, Vicki Johnson (Cliff Barber), Sandra Moore (Steve Moore), grandchildren: Holly (Sherylin), Liese, Jay (Jennifer), Colwynn, Meighen, Amanda (Brody), Gordon, Haylee (Thomas). Jeannette was lucky enough to have 3 great grandchildren – Jack, Olive and Sammy. She was preceded in death by her loving husband, Leonard and son, Arnie. We think she died on purpose to avoid having to make a decision about who will inherit the coveted glass “apple bowl” that has held countless coleslaw salads at every family gathering over the last 70 years.

In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to the BC Schizophrenia Society in loving memory of the dedication Jeannette had to this wonderful organization in support of her son, Arnie.