Herman B. Johnson

Herman B. Johnson, 91, of Mandan, formerly of Beach, North Dakota, passed away December 27, 2012, at the St. Alexius Medical Center in Bismarck. Funeral services will be held Monday, December 31, at 1:00 PM at Parkway Funeral Service, 2330 Tyler Parkway, Bismarck, with Rev. Darrel Aleson officiating. Visitation will be held one hour prior to the service at the funeral home. Herman Benjamin Johnson was born August 27, 1921, at Wyndmere, North Dakota, to Berthina Thompson and John O. Johnson, the youngest of five children. Times were hard and he worked several jobs to help support the family while in high school. Herman graduated from Wyndmere High School in 1939, and then the University of Minnesota School of Mortuary Science. He served in the United States Army during the Second World War, serving with distinction in the Medical Corps. Herman moved to Beach in 1950, and married Marguerite Peggy Awsumb in October of that year. They owned and operated the Johnson Funeral Chapel in Beach and the Crescent Funeral Home in Wibaux, Montana, until they retired in 1986. They also provided the area ambulance service and sold monuments. In retirement, Herman and Peggy enjoyed travel in their motor home, as snow birds in the winter and to Deadwood in the summer. They moved to Mandan in 1996, where they have lived to the present. Herman took pride in the professional services he provided to the community. He loved visiting with people, whether at the kitchen table where there was always a fresh pot of coffee, or on the bench in front of the Bullock Hotel on a summer afternoon. They enjoyed a good meal at Jack's Club or the Elks. He enjoyed discussing cars, watching Westerns or listening to the Oldies cranked way up on the Bose. And, he loved his dogs, big or small, his great canine companions that helped keep him active and sharp as a tack until his recent brief illness. Herman was a member of the Elks, American Legion, Amvets, North Dakota Funeral Directors Association, National Funeral Directors Association, and the Masons. Herman is survived by his wife of 62 years, Peggy of Bismarck; his son, Douglas Jann of Houston, Texas; his daughter, Joanie Johnson William Zuger of Mandan; his nephews, Art Solberg of Wyndmere and John Solberg of Bradenton, Florida; his niece, Carol Jean Johnson Childers of Moravian Falls, North Carolina; two grandchildren, Jeff Angie Johnson of Kodiak, Alaska, and Jill Watson of Sherman, Texas; and five great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his parents, John and Berthina; his brothers, Thomas, Arthur, and Gilbert; and his sister, Anna Solberg. Memorials are preferred to the Central Dakota Humane Society. Goodnight, good guy.

Herman B. Johnson

August 27, 1921 - December 27, 2012