Obituary of Marie D Johnson

Marie Margaret Daley Johnson, of Basking Ridge, passed away March 26, 2014 surrounded by her loving family. She was born October 17, 1922 in West Hoboken. She lived in Rutherford, NJ from her birth until November of 1961, when she moved to Basking Ridge with her family. She attended Rutherford High School, where she was a member of the National Honor Society and academically one of the ten highest ranking students in the Senior class. She was an excellent tennis player, ranked at #5 in New Jersey in the early 1940’s, and won the public court championships in Rutherford so many times they finally gave her the trophy permanently. There was no girl’s tennis team at Rutherford High at that time, and an attempt to play on the boys’ team was unsuccessful. She also enjoyed playing basketball and ice skating and was an enthusiastic fan of most sports. Following her graduation from high school in 1940, she attended Katharine Gibbs Secretarial School in the Pan Am building on Park Avenue in New York City. She was an executive secretary at Chatham Blanket in New York City from 1942 to 1948. She was a member of the Arlington Players Club where she met Charles W. Johnson, a veteran of World War II, and married him in September of 1948. They continued to live in Rutherford for 13 more years, during which time 4 of their 5 children were born. They relocated to Basking Ridge in November of 1961, and their 5th child was born the following year. Marie lived in her beloved house in Basking Ridge for 53 years, and raised her family there. She worked from home in the early years as a typist for a technical magazine, and later worked for 17 years for Dr. Walter Stocker of Basking Ridge. She continued to play tennis until she reached her early 80’s. She never stopped loving the game, remaining an avid watcher of any televised matches she could find. Marie and her husband, Charlie, were also both huge Yankee fans and enjoyed watching sports of all kinds together. Marie enjoyed any opportunity to travel, and particularly enjoyed a trip to Ireland in her 85th year. She was very proud of her Irish heritage. She was also very proud of her family, and loved being with them. Her grandchildren and great-grandchildren were the light of her life in later years, and she lived for the times the family was together. She was a member of Saint James Roman Catholic Church in Basking Ridge since 1961. Marie was pre-deceased by her husband, Charlie, by all three of her brothers, and a great granddaughter Onna. She is survived by her five children: Tom of Pluckemin, Jim of Warrington, PA, Judy Loree of Chatham, Kathy Viarengo of Basking Ridge, and Mary Jean (Midge) Magnier of Clinton; 8 grandchildren, and 6 great-grandchildren. Visitation will be held on Sunday, March 30, 2014 at Gallaway and Crane Funeral Home, 101 S. Finley Avenue, Basking Ridge, NJ from 1:00 – 3:00 pm. Funeral Mass will be held on Monday, March 31, 2014, 11:00 am, at St. James Church, Basking Ridge. Entombment will follow at Holy Cross Cemetery, Basking Ridge. In lieu of flowers, contributions in Marie’s name to Covenant House or the Alzheimer’s Association (please designate for Research) at P.O. Box 96011, Washington, DC 20090-6011 would be greatly appreciated.