Donald W. Johnson

Donald W. Johnson, age 89, of Litchfield died on Saturday, April 3, 2010 at the Meeker Memorial Hospital in Litchfield. Funeral services will be held at 11:00 AM on Wednesday, April 7, 2010 at the Beckville Lutheran Church. Visitation will be held from 6:00 until 8:00 PM on Tuesday, April 6, 2010 at the Johnson-Hagglund Funeral Home and will continue one hour prior to the service at the church. Interment will be in the Beckville Lutheran Cemetery. Donald William Johnson, the son of John and Alice (Sand) Johnson was born on July 2, 1920, in Cokato. He was baptized and confirmed into the Christian Faith. He attended school in Litchfield and graduated from Litchfield High School in 1939. After high school he began farming and on June 29, 1947, he was united in marriage to Elsie Anderson in Cokato. They continued to farm in Greenleaf township for his entire working life. Donald was a member of the Greenleaf Community Club and District 1112 School Board. He was involved with the Farm Bureau and was a 4-H leader. The importance of Don’s faith was demonstrated as he did devotions each morning. He was an active member of Beckville Lutheran Church, serving on the church board. Don had a heart for music and singing, and especially enjoyed musicals. He was a charter member of the Litchfield Male Chorus and sang with them for nearly 35 years. Don was a loving caretaker of all living things and took special joy in flowers and gardening, but he thought his greatest accomplishment was raising his children. He loved spending time with his family, especially his grandchildren. He is survived by his children; Mark Johnson of Zanesville, OH, Mary (and Ken) Rialson of Tracy, Ann Johnson of Apple Valley, Jerry (and Chris) Johnson of Sauk Rapids, Christopher (and Kim Devine-Johnson) Johnson of St. Peter, and Michael Johnson of Litchfield, 12 grandchildren and 1great grandchild. He is also survived by his sisters Hazel Wittenberg of Litchfield and Grace Farnquist of Savage. He was preceded in death by his wife Elsie, brothers Ralph and Andrew, sister Dorothy Nelson and daughter-in-law Becky Johnson.