Betty Kathryn Johnson, 93, passed from this life on January 28, 2016 at St. Luke’s Nursing Home in Dickinson. A memorial service will be held Saturday, April 16 at 11 a.m. at Eagle Valley Evangelical Free Church, rural Christine. Interment will be following at Eagle Cemetery.
Betty was born on April 20, 1922 to parents Melvina (Sundstrom) and Anton Samuel “Sam” Anderson on a farm near Christine. She was the second of four children. She graduated from Christine High School in 1940.
She attended Trinity Bible School in Deerfield, Ill. She lived and worked in Los Angeles, Calif. and Minneapolis, Minn. then moved back to the Fargo area and worked there for a time. On June 14, 1953 she married Millard Johnson from Wolverton, Minn. They became parents to two daughters, Greta and Tanis. They also owned and operated the Wolverton Telephone Company.
Betty and Millard were both of Swedish descent and traveled to Sweden and other European countries in 1979. They had a love of traveling in their later years and traveled many places across the U.S. and Canada.
Betty also loved music, and as a young girl she sang with her sisters and learned to play the pump organ at home. She later sang in trios and played the church organ for many years. She was very active in church by teaching Sunday school, singing in choirs, participating in the Women’s Missionary Society, and playing an instrumental role in getting the Eagle Valley Evangelical Free Church built and moved from Wolverton to its current location.
Millard was interested in becoming a Ham (Amateur) radio operator so Betty and he ventured to study and get their radio licenses. They were active in Ham Radio activities for several years after.
Betty is survived by her daughter Greta (Dale) Westvig of Chanhassen, Minn., daughter Tanis (Todd) Marschner of South Heart; grandchildren Brad (Sarah) Westvig, Nicole (Chris) Stephany, Brandon (Ashley) Marschner, Bethany (Daniel) Aichele, Erin (Andrew) Ulmer, Isaiah (fiancée Anna Franz) Marschner, and Adreana Marschner; great-grandchildren Madalyn and Annika Westvig, Brayden and Tyler Stephany, Adeline and Samuel Aichele, and Henry Marschner; brother Harlan (Pearl) Anderson of Lakewood, Calif.; and sister Elaine Carlson of Minneapolis, Minn.
She was preceded in death by husband Millard Johnson; grandson Ethan Marschner; parents Sam and Melvina Anderson; and sister Carmen Agrimson.
Betty Johnson was a beloved daughter, sister, wife, mother, and grandmother. She will be missed by many, but we are thankful she has been a part of our lives and is now in paradise with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
