Morris “Gene” JOHNSON ended his journey through life on Tuesday, September 03, 2024.
He began his journey on October 23, 1931 in the south side of Chicago, during the Great Depression. Soon after, came World War 2. Even though it must have been a tough childhood, he seemed only to have happy memories of it.
After his schooling, Gene enlisted in the US Air Force and served in Korea. For his service, he received many honours and medals from the US Government, the Korean Government and the United Nations.
Following his Korean deployment, he was transferred to the Air Force Base in Michigan and made regular flights to North Bay. This is where his life changed forever. On what seemed to be a magical night, he met his future love, Emilia Gauthier, at a dance hall on the shores of Lake Nipissing. They would spend the next seven decades together.
After briefly moving back to Chicago, they decided to live in Corbeil and built the family home on the Gauthier farm. In time, the family grew with six sons, Gene, Rick, Mike, Rob, Brian and Ray. And with sons, eventually, daughters-in-law. Six brides for six brothers. Dina, Karen, Kelly, Marion, Brenda-Lee and Genevieve. Gene loved them all.
Many adventures followed. There was a time when they owned and ran a family restaurant, The Yankee Grill, in North Bay. After that, Gene learned all about the true north as he became a travelling salesman and covered a territory from North Bay to Kapuskasing and beyond. Although he was always proud of his American roots, he made the decision to become a Canadian citizen, and he was forever devoted to his new home and country.
Over the years, the family grew with grandchildren, Vanessa (Derek), Stephanie (Ben), Ryan (Natalie), Steven (Sabrina), Christopher, Chantal (Bryce), Collin (Lee Ann), Craig (Catherine), Carter, Ellie, Rhyse and Emmett.
Great grandchildren, Brayden, Liam, Aiden, Annie, Aria, Harper, Violette and Maxim were another blessing for Gene, who loved his family.
Gene was the rock, the anchor for the entire family. He was always there for support or just to listen.
The last couple years were difficult. The ravages of time take their toll, on both body and mind. Through it all, Gene kept up his optimism and cheerfulness. When asked how he was doing, he always replied with “Not bad for an old guy!"
The “old guy”, the rock, the anchor is gone now. He was loved and will always be missed by Emilia and the rest of us. Till we meet again “old guy”.
Gene will also be remembered by his extended family, the Gauthiers from Corbeil and the Johnson family from the Illinois area.
Special thanks to all the doctors, nurses and staff of the North Bay Regional Health Unit for their wonderful and compassionate care. Thank you to Dr Reitzel who always took the time to listen to Dad’s stories and Dr. Galbraith who compassionately helped Dad navigate through his challenges with dementia and finally his grand-daughter-in-law, Natalie Johnson, who was his primary caregiver for the last few years.
In lieu of flowers, please send donations to the Alzheimer’s Society or a charity of your choice.