Lily Johnson, 99, former school teacher and longtime resident of Bovey and Wasson Lake, died June 2, 2007 at the Bigfork Valley Community where she had lived the last few years.
She graduated from Greenway High School in 1925, Duluth State Teachers' College (1927) and University of Minnesota, Duluth (1959). She had also studied music at McPhail Institute in Minneapolis and Suomi College in Hancock, Mich.
Born in Hibbing in 1908, her family lived briefly in Chisholm, then in Bovey, until they moved to Coleraine when Lily was in her late teens. Lily and Lars Johnson were married May 31, 1936 at Bethel Lutheran Church in Bovey. After living in Minneapolis and Eveleth, they returned to Bovey in 1940 where they remained until retiring to their Wasson Lake home in 1973.
Following her two years at Duluth State Teachers' College at age 19, she taught for one year, grades 1-8 in a one-room schoolhouse north of Nashwauk at O'Leary Lake. One of her students was the same age as she! She later taught primary grade at Bigfork, Calumet, and Taconite. She concluded a forty year career of teaching at the old Greenway Grade School in Coleraine, then at Vandyke Elementary. She was respected as a conscientious reading and music teacher. Before retiring in 1973, she had taught grandchildren of prior first-grade students.
She actively participated in the music and education activities of Bethel Lutheran Church, Bovey, Grace Bible Chapel, Grand Rapids, and Old Scenic Community Church, rural Bigfork. She also accompanied Lars in their activities with the Gideons in Itasca County. She retired from playing for worship services at the nursing home last fall, at age 98.
Her travels included highly-cherished trips around North America with Lars, visiting family and friends, and two study trips to Israel. She also visited Finland where she and her siblings maintained relationships with their many cousins. Her most expansive travels were in her prayer for missionary friends and family members and the countries around the world where they worked. Prayer continued as a daily discipline to her final days.
She was preceded in death by her husband Lars Johnson, parents John Victor Lager & Amalia Puumala Lager, and step-parents Hilja and Henry Ruuhela, and siblings John Victor Lager (infancy), Vivian Lager (childhood), sisters Mary Lager (Eddie) Koski, Violet Lager Holt, Irma Ruuhela Reilley, and brothers Victor Lager and Charles Lager, and Harold Lager.
Surviving her are children Miriam (Rodger) Spears, Bloomington, Minn., and Lowell (Marguerite) Johnson, Olympia, Wash. Grandchildren: Karin Spears (Jim) St. George, Garret (Manuela) Spears, Jeffrey (Laurie) Spears, Nathan (Cari) Spears, Corey (Lynn) Spears, Shara Lynn Spears Davis, Derek Johnson, Erika Johnson; 18 great-grandchildren, and one great-great grandchild. She is also survived by many first-cousins in Finland, Canada, and Sweden, and by nieces and nephews in Arizona, California and Minnesota.
............
Mrs. Johnson was my first grade teacher, in the 1961-62 school year, at Vandyke Elementary School. She was a kindly, but firm teacher. I liked her very much, and remember her fondly!
She graduated from Greenway High School in 1925, Duluth State Teachers' College (1927) and University of Minnesota, Duluth (1959). She had also studied music at McPhail Institute in Minneapolis and Suomi College in Hancock, Mich.
Born in Hibbing in 1908, her family lived briefly in Chisholm, then in Bovey, until they moved to Coleraine when Lily was in her late teens. Lily and Lars Johnson were married May 31, 1936 at Bethel Lutheran Church in Bovey. After living in Minneapolis and Eveleth, they returned to Bovey in 1940 where they remained until retiring to their Wasson Lake home in 1973.
Following her two years at Duluth State Teachers' College at age 19, she taught for one year, grades 1-8 in a one-room schoolhouse north of Nashwauk at O'Leary Lake. One of her students was the same age as she! She later taught primary grade at Bigfork, Calumet, and Taconite. She concluded a forty year career of teaching at the old Greenway Grade School in Coleraine, then at Vandyke Elementary. She was respected as a conscientious reading and music teacher. Before retiring in 1973, she had taught grandchildren of prior first-grade students.
She actively participated in the music and education activities of Bethel Lutheran Church, Bovey, Grace Bible Chapel, Grand Rapids, and Old Scenic Community Church, rural Bigfork. She also accompanied Lars in their activities with the Gideons in Itasca County. She retired from playing for worship services at the nursing home last fall, at age 98.
Her travels included highly-cherished trips around North America with Lars, visiting family and friends, and two study trips to Israel. She also visited Finland where she and her siblings maintained relationships with their many cousins. Her most expansive travels were in her prayer for missionary friends and family members and the countries around the world where they worked. Prayer continued as a daily discipline to her final days.
She was preceded in death by her husband Lars Johnson, parents John Victor Lager & Amalia Puumala Lager, and step-parents Hilja and Henry Ruuhela, and siblings John Victor Lager (infancy), Vivian Lager (childhood), sisters Mary Lager (Eddie) Koski, Violet Lager Holt, Irma Ruuhela Reilley, and brothers Victor Lager and Charles Lager, and Harold Lager.
Surviving her are children Miriam (Rodger) Spears, Bloomington, Minn., and Lowell (Marguerite) Johnson, Olympia, Wash. Grandchildren: Karin Spears (Jim) St. George, Garret (Manuela) Spears, Jeffrey (Laurie) Spears, Nathan (Cari) Spears, Corey (Lynn) Spears, Shara Lynn Spears Davis, Derek Johnson, Erika Johnson; 18 great-grandchildren, and one great-great grandchild. She is also survived by many first-cousins in Finland, Canada, and Sweden, and by nieces and nephews in Arizona, California and Minnesota.
............
Mrs. Johnson was my first grade teacher, in the 1961-62 school year, at Vandyke Elementary School. She was a kindly, but firm teacher. I liked her very much, and remember her fondly!
Lily Johnson, 99, former school teacher and longtime resident of Bovey and Wasson Lake, died June 2, 2007 at the Bigfork Valley Community where she had lived the last few years.
She graduated from Greenway High School in 1925, Duluth State Teachers' College (1927) and University of Minnesota, Duluth (1959). She had also studied music at McPhail Institute in Minneapolis and Suomi College in Hancock, Mich.
Born in Hibbing in 1908, her family lived briefly in Chisholm, then in Bovey, until they moved to Coleraine when Lily was in her late teens. Lily and Lars Johnson were married May 31, 1936 at Bethel Lutheran Church in Bovey. After living in Minneapolis and Eveleth, they returned to Bovey in 1940 where they remained until retiring to their Wasson Lake home in 1973.
Following her two years at Duluth State Teachers' College at age 19, she taught for one year, grades 1-8 in a one-room schoolhouse north of Nashwauk at O'Leary Lake. One of her students was the same age as she! She later taught primary grade at Bigfork, Calumet, and Taconite. She concluded a forty year career of teaching at the old Greenway Grade School in Coleraine, then at Vandyke Elementary. She was respected as a conscientious reading and music teacher. Before retiring in 1973, she had taught grandchildren of prior first-grade students.
She actively participated in the music and education activities of Bethel Lutheran Church, Bovey, Grace Bible Chapel, Grand Rapids, and Old Scenic Community Church, rural Bigfork. She also accompanied Lars in their activities with the Gideons in Itasca County. She retired from playing for worship services at the nursing home last fall, at age 98.
Her travels included highly-cherished trips around North America with Lars, visiting family and friends, and two study trips to Israel. She also visited Finland where she and her siblings maintained relationships with their many cousins. Her most expansive travels were in her prayer for missionary friends and family members and the countries around the world where they worked. Prayer continued as a daily discipline to her final days.
She was preceded in death by her husband Lars Johnson, parents John Victor Lager & Amalia Puumala Lager, and step-parents Hilja and Henry Ruuhela, and siblings John Victor Lager (infancy), Vivian Lager (childhood), sisters Mary Lager (Eddie) Koski, Violet Lager Holt, Irma Ruuhela Reilley, and brothers Victor Lager and Charles Lager, and Harold Lager.
Surviving her are children Miriam (Rodger) Spears, Bloomington, Minn., and Lowell (Marguerite) Johnson, Olympia, Wash. Grandchildren: Karin Spears (Jim) St. George, Garret (Manuela) Spears, Jeffrey (Laurie) Spears, Nathan (Cari) Spears, Corey (Lynn) Spears, Shara Lynn Spears Davis, Derek Johnson, Erika Johnson; 18 great-grandchildren, and one great-great grandchild. She is also survived by many first-cousins in Finland, Canada, and Sweden, and by nieces and nephews in Arizona, California and Minnesota.
............
Mrs. Johnson was my first grade teacher, in the 1961-62 school year, at Vandyke Elementary School. She was a kindly, but firm teacher. I liked her very much, and remember her fondly!
She graduated from Greenway High School in 1925, Duluth State Teachers' College (1927) and University of Minnesota, Duluth (1959). She had also studied music at McPhail Institute in Minneapolis and Suomi College in Hancock, Mich.
Born in Hibbing in 1908, her family lived briefly in Chisholm, then in Bovey, until they moved to Coleraine when Lily was in her late teens. Lily and Lars Johnson were married May 31, 1936 at Bethel Lutheran Church in Bovey. After living in Minneapolis and Eveleth, they returned to Bovey in 1940 where they remained until retiring to their Wasson Lake home in 1973.
Following her two years at Duluth State Teachers' College at age 19, she taught for one year, grades 1-8 in a one-room schoolhouse north of Nashwauk at O'Leary Lake. One of her students was the same age as she! She later taught primary grade at Bigfork, Calumet, and Taconite. She concluded a forty year career of teaching at the old Greenway Grade School in Coleraine, then at Vandyke Elementary. She was respected as a conscientious reading and music teacher. Before retiring in 1973, she had taught grandchildren of prior first-grade students.
She actively participated in the music and education activities of Bethel Lutheran Church, Bovey, Grace Bible Chapel, Grand Rapids, and Old Scenic Community Church, rural Bigfork. She also accompanied Lars in their activities with the Gideons in Itasca County. She retired from playing for worship services at the nursing home last fall, at age 98.
Her travels included highly-cherished trips around North America with Lars, visiting family and friends, and two study trips to Israel. She also visited Finland where she and her siblings maintained relationships with their many cousins. Her most expansive travels were in her prayer for missionary friends and family members and the countries around the world where they worked. Prayer continued as a daily discipline to her final days.
She was preceded in death by her husband Lars Johnson, parents John Victor Lager & Amalia Puumala Lager, and step-parents Hilja and Henry Ruuhela, and siblings John Victor Lager (infancy), Vivian Lager (childhood), sisters Mary Lager (Eddie) Koski, Violet Lager Holt, Irma Ruuhela Reilley, and brothers Victor Lager and Charles Lager, and Harold Lager.
Surviving her are children Miriam (Rodger) Spears, Bloomington, Minn., and Lowell (Marguerite) Johnson, Olympia, Wash. Grandchildren: Karin Spears (Jim) St. George, Garret (Manuela) Spears, Jeffrey (Laurie) Spears, Nathan (Cari) Spears, Corey (Lynn) Spears, Shara Lynn Spears Davis, Derek Johnson, Erika Johnson; 18 great-grandchildren, and one great-great grandchild. She is also survived by many first-cousins in Finland, Canada, and Sweden, and by nieces and nephews in Arizona, California and Minnesota.
............
Mrs. Johnson was my first grade teacher, in the 1961-62 school year, at Vandyke Elementary School. She was a kindly, but firm teacher. I liked her very much, and remember her fondly!
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