JoAnn Johnson

JoAnn Johnson, 94, was born December 10, 1931, in Seymour, IN to Edna and John Garvey. She married James Johnson, her high school sweetheart in 1953. He preceded her in death in 2001. She is survived by two children: Jan Funkhouser (Clay) of Portland OR and Mike Johnson (Thai) of Redondo Beach, CA and two grandchildren Megan and Kevin Funkhouser.

Horses, politics and travel were central to her life.

They got horses shortly after arriving in Los Alamos. She and Jim enjoyed many hours riding their horses on the area’s many trails. She served as President of the Los Alamos Posse Auxiliary and donated many hours to the Junior Posse, local horse shows and gymkhanas.

In politics, she held many leadership positions in the Republican Party at the local and state levels including party chairman for Los Alamos County, State Chairman for the Republican Women and Vice Chairman of the State Party. Her proudest leadership achievement was when the Republican Party became the majority party in Los Alamos County, only the second county in New Mexico to do so.

She worked on many campaigns throughout the years and then became a candidate herself, leading to her election as Los Alamos County Assessor for two terms. She served on Governor Gary Johnson’s Health Advisory Committee and was elected as a delegate to Republican National Convention three times.

She and Jim travelled to many National Parks fulfilling their love of the outdoors. The Grand Canyon was their favorite. They took the mule ride down to the bottom of the canyon many times.

She loved giving back to the Los Alamos community she called home for nearly 70 years. She was a Girl Scout and Cub Scout leader in the early years. She served on the Senior Center and Parks and Recreation Boards. And volunteered at the Friends of the Library Bookstore and did taxes for others at the Senior Center.

One of her proudest moments was going back to school to receive her Associates Degree in Accounting allowing her to further her career at the Los Alamos National Laboratory.

But above all she was a great Mom – focused on providing the guidance and life lessons necessary for her children to lead independent and adventurous lives.