Marvin Johnson

Marvin L. Johnson passed away in the early morning hours of February 17, 2015 in the Inpatient Cancer Center Unit at Billings Clinic after a very long and courageous eleven year battle with Basal Squamous Cell Carcinoma. He was diagnosed February 4, 2004. Marv was born at Columbus Hospital in Great Falls, Montana on March 4, 1942 to Vernon T. and Anna M. (Wax) Johnson. He joined his siblings Gordon and Phyllis at their home in Shelby. The family of five moved to the west end of Billings at 34th and Poly. Their land is now known as Green Valley Drive subdivision. He spent many happy years riding bikes with buddies around the Rims and to the movies at the downtown Rio Theatre on Saturdays. Marv and Phyllis used phonographic records as their first Frisbees, by throwing them out of their hay loft window, which was fun for awhile until they got caught. One of his best memories was eating watermelon on the porch with his Grandpa Wax. The siblings spent many hours with Grandpa Wax at his downtown Billings barber shop. Phyllis always had a horse which Marv reluctantly helped her with. They had many family dogs that each of the siblings told stories about in later years. Marv was an avid downhill skier at Red Lodge Mountain. He graduated from Billings Senior High in 1960. During those years he began a life long passion for cars and burning the point. He was a member of the Cam Busters car club. He worked at the Albertsons store in West Park Plaza through high school and after. He had an opportunity to move his family of three to Portland Oregon for a job with Northwest Pipe, a lead from a friend. He and son Neil were in Portland for 10 years. Marv loved the water and his years in Oregon. Marv and Neil had many fun adventures with the boy scouts, the Rockets Little League team, and a close group of friends. In 1974 Marv and Neil moved back to Billings in the dead of winter in his green Firebird after his father Vernon's death and began work at Midland Implement. Marv and Kathy Winship met through mutual friends in the spring of 1976. They were married October 22, 1977 in Red Lodge. They spent the first 5 years of marriage camping, traveling to the west coast, time at Kathy's parent's ranch, cross-country skiing, cheering and playing softball on the Deaconess's Hospital teams. A fond memory Neil had, was of a fun trip to Disneyland the family took where they all could run amok and act like kids. In August of 1982 they welcomed Kody into their home on the west-end, a few blocks from the original Johnson family home. As with any new addition to a family, life got very busy. A special time for Marv and Kody was bath time and some how there was always more water on the floor than in the tub. Marv loved the water including waterskiing except when Kathy was the spotter. Games were always important to Marv from Pollyanna to backgammon to poker to Yahtzee to croquet, always with family and friends on a mission to defeat him. He always said he only cheats at one game. We all knew it was the one he was playing at the time. He had a passion for his sports teams from Boulder Arrowhead Little League to Senior High Broncs that Marv and Kathy were avid cheerleaders and behind the scenes worker bees. Baseball was a love for the family and many afternoons/nights were spent in the yard practicing until their first baseman started throwing to hard for his parents to catch. Marv loved the Seattle Seahawks. The house became very silent in the last moments of this year's Super Bowl. Imagine a super bowl game with the halftime entertainment being a game of croquet in the snow with the course being cutout. That was our Marvin. Kathy never joined Marv, Neil, and Charlie to any Outlaws games, the boys were too rowdy but they did have fun. The family had many memorable travels but traveling up the Oregon coast from Newport to Astoria in 2013 with the Pacific Ocean and lighthouses was fantastic. Also, was watching the Canadian Olympic speed skating trials in Vancouver BC in 2009 and Barry Bonds hitting his 732nd home run in San Francisco in 2006. The summer of 2014 was very special too, with Kody's college buddies at Lake Pend Oreille in Sand Point, ID where his young family in earlier years spent many summer vacations with Kathy's family. Marv loved music and had artists to see on his bucket list Dwight Yokum, Neil Diamond, the Beach Boys, and of course Elton John. Kathy and Marv made it to Las Vegas and enjoyed Elton's Red Piano concert and the warm winter weather. One of the best concerts was the Beach Boys at the 2012 Billings Clinic Classic. The family would like to thank all of the Billings Clinic family that touched his life during his battle. He thought all of you as friends and I know he added a smile to your heart too. Marv was preceded in death by both sets of grandparents, Frank and Mary Wax, Ollie and Martha Johnson; his loving parents; and sister, Phyllis. He is survived by wife, Kathy; son, Kody, and son, Neil, from a previous marriage, all of Billings; brother, Gordon T. Johnson of Bellevue NE.; niece, Theresa Larson and family; nephew, Mike Hetland and family; cousin, Johnnie Wax and family all of Billings; and Kathy's extended family. This earth has lost a great friend. The family knows he has organized a great poker game and a Croquet championship has already started in heaven. Please bring your memories of Marvin to the memorial service to share. Marvin's services will be held at Dahl Funeral Chapel on February 26th at 1:00 pm with a luncheon, followed by an inurnment at the Mountview Cemetery Mausoleum. If you wish to make donations in Marvin's name a couple options would be the Billings Clinic Foundation to the Patient Assistance or Employee Crisis Funds, 2917 Tenth Avenue North, Billings, MT 59107 or the Yellowstone County Big Brothers and Big Sisters, 2123 2nd Ave. North Billings, MT 59101.