Doyle C. Johnson

Doyle Clifford Johnson November 19, 1920 – October 21, 2014 Beloved father, husband, grandfather, great-grandfather, brother-in-law, uncle, cousin and loyal friend. He was a proud WWII veteran and was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross with one Oak Leaf Cluster and the Air Medal with thirteen Oak Leaf Clusters. Doyle Clifford Johnson was born on November 19, 1920 to Minnie Irene Johnson and R. Clifford Johnson in Axtell, Nebraska. An only child, Doyle was raised on their small farm and had many happy and funny stories to tell about farm life. He attended Trinity Lutheran Church and Axtell High School where he enjoyed being part of the school plays, and playing basketball and baseball. Doyle attended Kearney State College from 1939 – 1940 and Lincoln Aircraft School in 1941. He entered the Army Air Corp in July, 1942 at Ft. Logan, Colorado, and volunteered for aerial gunnery school. He was stationed at various bases in Great Britain and France from June, 1943 – November, 1944 and completed 74 bombing missions as a flight engineer/waist gunner on a B-26, Martin Marauder, into Belgium, France, Holland and western Germany. He received an Honorable Discharge in May, 1945 and joined Remington Rand Corporation, servicing what was known as the Model I Tabulating Machine. In the beginning of the 1950's, he learned to maintain one of the first true computers, which evolved into the mainframe computers of the 1960's, and became the PCs, laptops and tablets used today. Doyle installed and serviced those massive machines in Pueblo and Denver until 1978 when he retired. Doyle met his first wife, Patty, through church and Luther League events and they were married at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Denver, Colorado on November 30, 1946. In 1952, Remington Rand transferred the couple to Pueblo, Colorado and Doyle and Patty adopted their first child, John Howard Johnson. They made their way back to Denver in 1956 and adopted a daughter, Wendy Jean Johnson, in 1957. They bought a house in Westminster and Doyle set to finishing the basement, tending his vegetable garden and fly-fishing at their weekend getaway near Eldora, Colorado. Patty was the middle child of five siblings and the family grew with spouses and children. All five lived in the Denver area so holidays were always spent with lots of family. Doyle enjoyed being part of a larger family and was very close to all of Patty's siblings and their spouses. They often crammed a couple of families into one car and took off to visit Patty's parents in Illinois. Many annual trips were also made to Nebraska to visit Doyle's family in Aurora and Axtell. The family attended Advent Lutheran Church and Doyle served as a councilman for many years. He and Patty were devoted to God, country and family. Patty passed away on January 13, 1977 of kidney failure; a complication of diabetes. They had been married thirty years. Doyle retired from Remington Rand/Sperry/Univac soon after her death. Michael and Barbara Barrett lived across the street from Doyle. They thought Doyle should meet Mike's sister, Louisa Bishop, and the two were married on January 14, 1983 at Advent Lutheran Church in Westminster. Two families became one. Through this union, Doyle gained more brothers and sisters-in-law, nephews, nieces and cousins. Wendy and John (with his children Wes and Stacy) now had a new sister, Donna, and many more aunts, uncles and cousins. Donna had a son, Michael and added Meghan. Wendy soon married Thomas Ward, and Heather and Shawn soon followed. Thomas also brought Dominique, Jason, and Danielle into the family. Doyle's family was growing by leaps and bounds and he welcomed them all with open arms. John's marriage to Karen Ruel, brought two more grandsons, Kevin and Tim, into the family. More marriages and great-grandchildren Alexis, Avery, Logan, Luke, Payton, Jensen, Rope, Raef, Paige, Reese, Brianna, Maya and Andrew kept fueling the light in his and Louisa's life. Doyle and Louisa had many happy journeys together—literally and figuratively. They traveled to mainland Europe, England, Hawaii, Alaska, Florida, California, Arizona and more. They enjoyed being active members in their church and in Advent Lutheran's XYZ (Xtra Years of Zest) group, participating in cookouts, campouts, and various other outings and community events. In recent years they visited Doyle's childhood home in Nebraska and the World War II Memorial in Washington, DC. They watched their well-blended family grow with marriages and births, and counted themselves blessed. They spent the last several years in retirement at the Inn at Atria in Lakewood, Colorado. Louisa fell, breaking her femur above the knee. She had surgery to repair it, but complications arose and she died on May 21, 2013 at Lutheran Hospital in Wheat Ridge, Colorado. Doyle then moved into the Memory Care Center at the Inn at Atria and resided there until his death, October 21, 2014. Doyle passed away peacefully and quietly with his daughters, Wendy and Donna, holding his hands. He was a strong Christian who lived his Christian values every day. Doyle is survived by his Children: John Howard Johnson (spouse Karen Ruel Johnson), Wendy Jean Johnson-Ward, Donna Louise Bishop Collins. Grandchildren: Wes Johnson (and Lee Wah Lim), Stacy Johnson Finney (and Chris Finney), Michael Patrick Collins, Meghan Louise Collins Prince (and Jeff Prince), Heather Marie Ward, Shawn Nicholas Doyle Ward, Kevin Ruel, Tim Ruel (and Karen Ruel), Dominique Theresa Ward Wilson (and Michael Wilson), Jason Thomas Ward (and DeAnne Winey-Ward), and Danielle Kristin Ward. Great Grandchildren: Alexis and Avery Johnson; Logan and Luke Finney; Payton, Rope, Jensen, and Raef Ruel; Macy and Jack Prince; Maya and Andrew Ward; and Paige, Reese and Brianna Wilson. And lots and lots of nieces and nephews and others that he loved like his own children. Visitation will be Thursday, October 30, 2014, 4-7 PM, Horan & McConaty Family Chapel, 7577 West 80th Avenue, in Arvada, Colorado. Memorial Services honoring Doyle will be Saturday, November 1, 2014, 2 PM, at Advent Lutheran Church, 7979 Meade Street, in Westminster, Colorado. Committal Service with Military Honors will be Monday, November 3, 2014, 10:15 AM, at Fort Logan National Cemetery, Area ""C"", 3698 South Sheridan Boulevard, Denver, Colorado. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made in Doyle's name to the Alzheimer's Association, 455 Sherman Street, #500, Denver, Colorado 80203. Please share your memories of Doyle and condolences with his family by selecting ""sign guestbook"" below.