Ruth Johnson
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PRINCETON — D. Ruth Johnson, 89, of rural Princeton died at 8:01 a.m. Sunday, Aug. 30, 2009, at her home after a short illness.
Born March 23, 1920, in Bureau Township to John M. and Mary S. (King) Andersen, she married Burton E. Johnson Aug. 9, 1941, at her home in rural Princeton. They recently celebrated their 68th wedding anniversary.
She graduated from Bureau Township High School in 1937 and received her teaching certificate from LPO Junior College (now Illinois Valley Community College) in 1939. She was a longtime school teacher, beginning her teaching career in Prior Country School and then teaching in Bureau Township Elementary School and Manlius Elementary School. She also served for many years as an election judge for Bureau Township.
She was a member of the First Baptist Church of Manlius where she taught Sunday school for 55 years and was church organist for more than 60 years. She served on numerous church committees and was a past president of the American Baptist Women.
She is survived by her husband, Burton; one son, Gary (Charlotte) Johnson of Bull Valley, Ill.; three grandchildren, Benjamin Johnson of North Adams, Mass., Stephanie (Jacob) Epstein of Monument, Colo., and Andrew (Sarah) Johnson of Old Town, Maine; one great-grand-daughter, Alexandra Epstein of Monument, Colo.; and one niece, Janet (Melvin) Grossman of Ohio, Ill.
She was preceded in death by her parents; one brother, G. Harold Andersen; and one nephew, Lt. Maj. John H. Andersen.
Services will be at 10 a.m. Thursday at the First Baptist Church of Manlius with Pastor Don Winters officiating. Burial will be in Oakland Cemetery, Princeton.
Visitation will be from 5 to 8 p.m. Wednesday at the Grant-Johnson Funeral Home, 30 W. Mechanic St., Princeton.
Memorials may be directed to the Wyanet Rescue Unit; First Baptist Church of Manlius, 19501 1200 East Street, Wyanet; Ruth and Burton Johnson Scholarship for Teachers at Judson University, 1151 N. State St., Elgin; or the Ruth and Burton Johnson Scholarship for Ministerial Education at Northern Baptist Theological Seminary, 660 E. Butterfield Road, Lombard.
