Kenneth Dwayne Johnson
Obituaries
Daily Sentinel page 3D - January 10, 2021
Kenneth Dwayne Johnson
was born June, 1936, in Watts,
Oklahoma, to Harold and Mable
Johnson. He passed away on
October 25, 2020, at St Mary’s
Hospital after a brief illness.
Kenneth lived a full life and
was a wonderful son, husband,
dad, grandfather, and friend.
He spent most of his life in Delta, Colorado, and was an honest,
honorable man with a great work ethic. He graduated from Delta
High School in 1954, then joined the United States Army in 1955.
He was assigned to the Military Police and served in Korea and at
Fort McNair in Washington, D.C. He returned to his family home
after an honorable discharge.
He then met the first love of his life, Catherine Dubs. They
were married in November, 1958. Kenneth and Catherine had
four children, Diane, Deborah, Jeff, and Donna. They raised their
children on the family farm that he, his dad, and brother (Wendell,
deceased) owned. The Johnsons were well respected in the farming
industry in Delta and won national awards. Kenneth was also
involved with the Colorado Farm Bureau and Delta Potato Growers
Co-Op. Unfortunately, in January, 1983, Kenneth lost Catherine
after a long battle with cancer during which he was with her
throughout.
Kenneth was fortunate to find a second love, Barbara Austin,
who brought to the family four more children, Butch, Susan, David,
and DeDe. Kenneth and Barbara were married in May, 1983. After
selling their portion of the family farm, they spent time traveling
and antiquing, mostly in their RV with other friends. After moving
to Grand Junction, they built the home of their dreams and loved
having friends and family visit. Sadly, “Barb” was also diagnosed
with cancer and passed away in January, 2019, with her “Kenny”
by her side.
Kenneth stayed active in retirement. He was a volunteer at St.
Mary’s Hospital and HopeWest. He was also a member of the
Western Slope ATV Association. In addition, he enjoyed many
meals with friends who enriched his life.
Kenneth’s survivors include his eight children, Butch Austin,
Susan Marquis, David Austin, Diane Caselman, DeDe Hill (Clyde),
Deborah Johnson, Jeff Johnson (Debbie), and Donna Pinto (Peter);
grandchildren, Justin Caselman, Jenifer Flowers (Jesse), Caswell
Austin, Ryan Akkerman, Trevor Akkerman (Megan), Danielle
Graham, Alexis Busch, and Mia Pinto, and great-grandchildren,
Tristan Akkerman, Raina Akkerman, Lily Akkerman, and Atticus
Ebbrecht.
Due to COVID restrictions, Kenneth’s Celebration of Life will
be held in 2021 on what would have been his 85th birthday. Details
will be forthcoming in late May.
Since both Kenneth and Barbara were strong advocates for
HopeWest, donations, in lieu of flowers, can be made to them.
