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Taylor Mill's Mary Elizabeth Johnson, 'ultimate grandmother,' sold toys
Mary Elizabeth Johnson's bumper sticker summed up the way she lived her life: "Happiness is being grandmas and grandpas." She was completely devoted to children - not just those in her own family but those whose lives she touched over the many years she worked at Johnny's Toys in Latonia.
"She was without a doubt the ultimate grandmother," said her daughter-in-law, Peggy Johnson of Morning View. "She wasn't real gooshy about them but she would go to the wall for every one of her grandkids. She gave that kind of unconditional love we all hope for."
Mrs. Johnson, 75, of Taylor Mill, died at 1:13 a.m. Friday at St. Elizabeth Medical Center South in Edgewood.
For 35 years, she tended to the needs of many Northern Kentucky children as they shopped for their hearts' desires in the aisles of Johnny's Toys. At Christmas her husband would sometimes pitch in at the store by playing the role of Santa Claus, while Mrs. Johnson handled business in the store's layaway department.
"She always liked to work," said her husband, William Edgar Johnson of Taylor Mill. "She loved kids and she loved to work, and she never would stop. I used to even call her 'busy bee' because she was always doing something."
Before she became ill, Mrs. Johnson enjoyed traveling and baking, said her husband. She was also a member of Latonia Christian Church.
Other survivors include sons, Richard S. Johnson of Morning View and Terry D. Johnson of Taylor Mill; four grandchildren and one great-grandchild.
Services will be at 10 a.m. Tuesday at Connley Brothers Funeral Home, Latonia. Visitation will be from 5 to 8 tonightat the funeral home. Burial will be in Floral Hills Cemetery, Taylor Mill. Memorials are suggested to Latonia Christian Church, 3900 Decoursey Ave., Covington, Ky. 41015.
James Nicholas Baughn, 69, of Erlanger, died Sunday at Gallatin Health Care Center, Warsaw.
Arrangements are pending at Eckler-Hudson Funeral Home, Dry Ridge.
Bernard Jennings, 72, of Glencoe, died Friday at his residence. He was retired from the former Green Line Bus Co., and was a member of Glencoe Baptist Church. A daughter, Betty Jo Jennings, preceded him in death.
Survivors include his wife, Doneta Jennings; a son, Larry Jennings of Glencoe; daughters, Martha Hisle of Newport and Brenda Nicholas of Clinton, Tenn.; a brother, Clifford Jennings of Richwood; sisters, Virginia Southworth of Taylor Mill and Lucille Bickers of Campbellsburg; six grandchildren and 22 great-grandchildren.
Services will be at 1 p.m. Tuesday at Carlton-Lowder Funeral Home, Warsaw. Visitation will be from 5 to 9 tonight at the funeral home. Burial will be in Napoleon Cemetery, Gallatin County. Memorials are suggested to Glencoe Baptist Church, Hawthorne Road, Glencoe, Ky. 41046; or St. Elizabeth Hospice, 401 E. 20th St., Covington, Ky. 41014.
Geneva McKeehan, 74, of Erlanger, died Friday at Village Care Center, Erlanger. She was a sales clerk with F. W. Woolworth department stores and a member of Central Parkway Church of God, Cincinnati. Her husband, Garland F. McKeehan, died in 1990.
Survivors include a daughter, Beverley Blackburn of Florence; sisters, Christine Hewitt of Wilmington, Del., and Patricia Isaacs of Independence; brothers, Clarence Willis of Xenia, Ohio, and Russell Willis of Brentwood, Tenn.; and two grandchildren.
Services will be at 2 p.m. today at Stith Funeral Home, Florence. Visitation will begin there at 11 a.m. Burial will be at 1 p.m. Tuesday at Resthaven Cemetery, Corbin. Memorials are suggested to American Cancer Society, 6612 Dixie Highway, Suite 2, Florence, Ky. 41042; or St. Elizabeth Hospice Unit, 401 E. 20th St., Covington, Ky. 41014.
Margaret Munson, 82, of Florence, died Sunday at Florence Park Care Center.
Arrangements are pending at Stith Funeral Home, Florence.
John F. Quatkemeyer, 92, of Erlanger, died at 6:30 a.m. Sunday at St. Elizabeth Medical Center South, Edgewood. He was a retired truck driver with Richter Transfer Co., Cincinnati, and a member of Teamsters Union Local No. 100, Cincinnati. His wife, Laura Quatkemeyer, died in 1991.
Survivors include a son, John F. Quatkemeyer of Ludlow; a daughter, Gay Moffitt of Edgewood; four grandchildren and 10 great- grandchildren.
Services will be at 10 a.m. Thursday at Linnemann Funeral Home, Erlanger. Visitation will be from 5 to 8 p.m. Wednesday at the funeral home. Burial will be in Forest Lawn Cemetery, Erlanger. Memorials are suggested to St. Elizabeth Hospice Unit, 401 E. 20th St., Covington, Ky. 41014; or Erlanger Baptist Church, 116 Commonwealth Ave., Erlanger, Ky. 41018.
Alonzo Rodgers, 68, of Covington, died at 10:40 a.m. Thursday at his residence. He was a machinist for Dynamic Industries in Cincinnati, a former machinist for American Tool, Cincinnati, and a Navy veteran of the Korean War.
Survivors include his wife, Patricia Rodgers; a daughter, Michelle Sparks of Covington; a son, Michael Grant Rodgers of Damascus, Md.; a stepdaughter, Marsha Watkins of Covington; stepsons, Willard Courtney Jr. and Ronald Gene Courtney, both of Covington; sisters, Jessie Wallace of Independence, Frances Beck of Edgewood, Hilda Schnieder of Florence and Margie Scott of Elsmere; brothers, Hubert Ellsworth Rodgers of Erlanger and Jack Rodgers of Florence; and 12 grandchildren.
Services were this morning at Linnemann Funeral Home, Burlington. Burial was in Floral Hills Cemetery, Taylor Mill.
Myrtle Cracraft Sanders, 84, of Germantown, died at 12:20 p.m. Saturday at Meadowview Regional Medical Center, Maysville. She was a homemaker and a member of Two Lick Baptist Church, Mason County. Her husband, James Stanley Sanders, died in 1982.
Survivors include a daughter, Calma Jean Butler of Gallipolis Ferry, W.Va.; sons, Ivan Wayne Sanders of Mays Lick, James S. Sanders Jr. of Maysville and David Sanders of Germantown; a sister, Nellie Wells of Cincinnati; brothers, Ray Cracraft and Harry Cracraft, both of Mount Olivet, and Donald Cracraft of Lexington; eight grandchildren, one step-grandchild, six great-grandchildren and two step-great-grandchildren.
Services will be at 2 p.m. Tuesday at Palmer Funeral Home, Mays Lick. Visitation will be from 6 to 9 tonight at the funeral home. Burial will be in Shannon Cemetery, Mays Lick. Memorials are suggested to the charity of the donor's choice.
Milton Smith, 86, of Park Hills, died at 10:44 a.m. Saturday at Lakeside Place Nursing Home, Highland Heights. He was a retired postal worker at the U.S. Post Office in downtown Cincinnati, and an Army veteran of World War II. His wife, Mary Frances Knapke Smith, died in 1998.
Survivors include nieces and nephews.
Graveside services will be at 11 a.m. Tuesday at Burlington Cemetery. Middendorf-Bullock Funeral Home, Covington, is handling arrangements.
Ronnie Dale Turner Sr., 34, of Bellevue, died Saturday at a friend's home in Dayton. He was a roofer and painter with Barnes Painting.
Survivors include his wife, Betty Turner of Bellevue; daughters, Sarah Turner of Bellevue and Amanda Walker of Covington; sons, Ronnie D. Turner Jr. of Bellevue, Joshua Walker and Matthew Walker, both of Covington; stepdaughters, Erin Holliman and Kimberly Holliman, both of Bellevue, and Leana Holliman of Ludlow; his parents, Jack and Ruth Turner of Covington; sisters, Cathy Ellis of Grant County, Lynn Gross of Latonia Lakes and Missy Turner of Dayton; and brothers, Jimmy Turner, Sammy Turner, Jackie Turner and Danny Turner, all of Covington.
Services will be at 10 a.m. Wednesday at Dobbling Funeral Home, Bellevue. Visitation will be from 5 to 8 p.m. Tuesday at the funeral home. Burial will be in Evergreen Cemetery, Southgate. Memorials are suggested to the charity of the donor's choice.
