Obituary of Harry N Johnson
Harry N. Johnson
Will be remembered for his dedicated love of Christ, and his family.
The Reverend Harry N Johnson, 93, of Basking Ridge, New Jersey passed away on Tuesday, November 12, 2019 at the Morristown Medical Center.
Harry was born on December 27, 1925 in Washington, PA. He was the son of Swedish immigrants, Karl and Mathilda Johnson. He was a World War II Navy veteran and discharged in 1946. He went on to earn a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry from Capital University in Columbus Ohio, and his Master of Divinity degree from the Lutheran Theological Seminary in Philadelphia PA in 1955. He was ordained in 1956. He served as the Pastor at Advocate and Grace Lutheran Churches in Philadelphia in the late 1950’s and early 1960’s, St. Luke’s Lutheran Church from 1966 to 1978 in Derwood, Maryland, and at Messiah Lutheran Church in Plainfield, New Jersey from 1980 to 1989.
He enjoyed sharing his faith journey with others and will be remembered for his dedicated love of Christ and his family.
He also enjoyed camping with his family, small to large woodworking projects which included the single handed planning and construction of a large deck to intricate small carvings on the case of a “clock” which depicts the story of God’s love, and just tinkering around the house with his many tools.
On August 8, 1953, Harry married Dorothea Drews of Butler, Pennsylvania. They shared an unconditional love for each other and God, and they made time each day for their daily devotional readings. They loved traveling together in their motorhomes throughout the years, and on numerous ocean and river cruises with various family and friends. A true blessing was time spent with family at Sandy Cove Bible Conference in North East, Maryland every summer starting in 1960. They have continued to maintain a seasonal campsite at the same location since 1971.
Harry is survived by his loving wife, Dorothea; his children: Ruth Anne DePalma (Jude) of Pueblo, CO; David Johnson (Jeri) of Sherwood, OR, and James (Jamie) Johnson (Sheila) of Philadelphia, PA; five grand-children and four great-grandchildren.
Visitation will be held on Friday, November 22. 5:00 -7:00 pm at Gallaway & Crane Funeral Home, 101 South Finley Avenue, Basking Ridge, NJ 07920. Funeral Service will be held on Saturday, November 23, 2019 at Somerset Hills Lutheran Church, 350 Lake Road, Basking Ridge, NJ 07920 with a viewing from 9:30 – 10:30 am. The Service will start 10:30 am at the church. Entombment will follow at Woodbridge Memorial Gardens Mausoleum, US Highway 1, Woodbridge, NJ. In lieu of flowers, contributions in Harry’s memory may be made to: Sandy Cove Ministries, 60 Sandy Cove Road, North East, MD 21901 or www.sandycove.org/give, Make a donation through credit or debit, and leave a comment: for Harry Johnson. For further information, or to leave an online condolence message please visit www.gcfuneralhome.com