- Date Of Birth: February 26, 1919
- Date Of Death: May 3, 2020
- State: Illinois
John Gerald “Jerry” Johnson, 101, of Peru, passed away Sunday, May 3, 2020 at Manor Court in Peru. Mr. Johnson was born February 26, 1919 to Bern and Olga (Schmudlach) Johnson. He was born and raised on a dairy farm in Mt. Morris, WI.
He graduated from Wautoma High School, where he played basketball throughout his high school years and into college. He was a graduate of the University of Wisconsin – Madison, where he received a Bachelor of Science degree in chemistry. He married Arlene Fiske on May 5, 1945. He later married Geraldine Jackson on December 27, 1971.
Mr. Johnson was a veteran of the U.S. Army, achieving the rank of Sergeant and working in the Chemical Corps during World War II. He was stationed in Providence, RI and it was there that he owned a sailboat and where he also met his first wife, Arlene. After marriage, they moved to Panama where he continued his work as a chemist in the Army. After his honorable discharge from the Army, Mr. Johnson worked as a chemist for U.S. Rubber. He later formed his own company, Bensdorf & Johnson Distributors. He lived most of his work life in the suburbs of Chicago as that was where his biggest clients were located.
He retired in 1987, moved to Georgia and then Florida where his second wife, Geraldine passed away in 2017. He then moved back to Illinois in 2017 to be near his children. He could take apart just about anything, fix it and put it back together. He had a saying, “You never force anything, especially mechanical, when you are trying to put it together.” He was always a patient, soft-spoken and easy-going man. Survivors include three children, Rodney (Diane) Johnson of Ingleside, Dean (Ann) Johnson of Palatine and Pamela J. Coffey of Peru; a former son-in-law, Patrick S. Coffey; three step-children, Doug Jackson, Deirdre (Gary) Brewster and Larry Jackson; 11 grandchildren; two great-grandchildren and several nieces and nephews.He was preceded in death by his two wives; one step-son, Matt Jackson; his parents; three sisters; one niece and two nephews.
