Barbara Jean Johnson

Barbara Jean Johnson (Sult) was born in Moffet, Oklahoma on July 4, 1932. Her family has enjoyed her fireworks ever since.

Moffet was tiny town in Eastern Oklahoma, so Barbara grew up with her cousins as friends, and they all attended a one room school house there. One of these cousins, Lois Jones, still lives in OK, just north of Moffet.

Her family moved from Oklahoma to North Long Beach in 1943 so her step-dad could work at the naval shipyard. She skipped 6th grade and started 7th grade in at Lindbergh Junior High. She went on to high school at Long Beach Jordan and because of her great smile and natural friendliness, was a popular Song Leader there. While in high school she worked at the Crest Theater selling concessions.

After high school she worked odd jobs and attended Long Beach City College to learn office and secretary skills. This schooling helped her gain a job at the Douglas Oil company in Downtown Los Angeles. There she met her husband John Johnson. John and she were married for 56 years, until his death in 2013.

Along the way, they raised two sons, Greg and Dave. They made sure the boys were active in school and sports, and through the 1960's, Barbara had a full-time job getting them to and from all of their activities...or as she might have said, "keeping them out of trouble!" During that time of her life, she and John developed a circle of friends revolving around their boy's sport teams, playing golf and bridge. The bridge group is where they developed friendships with George and Pat Norton and Harold and Helen Hirshland, both of whom they would travel with in later years.

Important throughout her life, were the friendships of Tom and Grace Ann Bates, and Monty and Laura Root. Tom and Monty had been friends with her husband in the Marine Corps, and the three families raised their families together, staying friends throughout their lives. Also, a significant part of their family, throughout their lives, were her brothers-in-laws, Jess and Carl Johnson.

After her boys began driving in high school, Barbara become a real estate agent with Tarbell Realtors in the Peninsula Center and worked until 1986. She and John then retired, and spent retirement traveling, playing golf, and enjoying their sons' families.

Family was central to Barbara. Her boys eventually married. Greg married Debbie and Dave married Tricia. Between them she enjoyed 5 grandchildren: Mike, Elise, Dan, Dave, and Kyle, whom she loved deeply.

Significantly, in 2013, Barbara made public her belief in Jesus Christ as her Savior. She had long held private beliefs but decided in 2013 to be baptized publicly by her pastor Jim Mackinga, and both she and John, deeply enjoyed her church family at Baycities Community Church in Lomita.

Barbara enjoyed life long friendships with a few high school classmates. Among them Hubert and Joannie Hust, Lois Roberts, Peggy Lunt, and Joanne Gallagher. Her care-giver through the last five years of her life, Liz Johnson, also became not only dear to her, but to her family as well.

Barbara is survived by her sons and daughter-in-laws, her grandchildren, and four great-grand-children.