John L Johnson

My grandpa loved to spoil his grandkids. He would always get us little treats and loved to take us out to eat. When I was growing up, I thought he was the richest man in the world. He lived in a beautiful white house in Salt Lake with a perfectly manicured lawn and flower beds. He loved to travel all over the world and he always gave us wonderful gifts for birthdays and Christmas. It was fun when we got to travel with him on the many army bases we visited and people would always salute him. I knew he was very important, but he was also just my grandpa. He loved to play crazy 8s and Go Fish. He also loved to practice putting little plastic golf balls in the back yard. We used to find them everywhere in the bushes. It was a fun game to see how many we could find. Grandpa always had a twinkle in his eye and you had to work really hard to get him upset with you. He loved to spoil us and we loved for him to do it. When Jeff and I were first married, we bought our first house just down the street from Grandma and Grandpa's house. We loved visiting them and helping them in the yard. We also got to drive their car to Coronado, CA when they stayed there in the winter and they let us stay a few days with them in the condo right on the beach. It was a beautiful place and i fondly remember having breakfast with him and looking out at the ocean. He would always take us to dinner at one of the bases on the island and we would always be treated like royalty. He also loved my children up to the very end of his life. When we would visit him in the care center, he always made sure he had cookies to give Erin and Derek. He didn't even mind when they played with his playing cards and magnifying glass. He was a class act, but he was also kind and caring. He died on my birthday. Every time I celebrate a birthday I also get to celebrate the life of my wonderful Grandpa Johnston.