BEAVER DAM, Ky. – Barbara Jean Gray Johnson, 90, of Beaver Dam, Kentucky ended her earthly journey on June 6, 2024. She was born on May 3, 1934, in Utica, Kentucky, the daughter of SD and Effie Gray.
She was a graduate of Daviess County High School Class of 1952 and began working at GE. A few years later her family attended the Ohio County Fair where she reunited with a childhood friend and her soulmate of 63 wonderful years, William H. “Bill” Johnson, and they were married on Sept. 28, 1956.
Barbara was a member of Goshen United Methodist Church. She was a friend and mother to all who needed a spare; “Mom” to countless band members, softball or basketball teams, her nephew, or the kids in the neighborhood. She devoted much of her life to raising and nurturing her two daughters and watching them grow into women she was proud to call her own. She was a quiet reflective individual but could also be a force of nature if needed, and her daughters probably deserved more of that force than they actually received.
She enjoyed making beautiful dresses for her girls, and traveling with her husband to places like Hawaii, Grand Canyon, and of course, Kentucky basketball games in March. She could make canned green beans, taste like they came right out of the garden, the best red velvet cake with buttercream icing, and no one ever turned down her biscuits and gravy. Barbara’s pecan pie was an Ohio County Fair winner. She also enjoyed visiting with former classmates at the monthly luncheons. Barbara also enjoyed shopping each Christmas season for kids less fortunate to ensure Santa Claus visited each of them. She, literally, would give you the coat off her back in the Winter, and she did if she felt you needed it more.
Aside from her parents, she was preceded in death by her husband, William H. “Bill” Johnson; daughter, Rebecca L. Johnson; and sister, Marion R. McKenney.
Barbara is survived by her daughter, Sherry L. Johnson, of Elizabethtown, Kentucky; her beloved cats, Ally Kate, Finnegan Blue, and TC; nephew/son, Steve McKenney (Billi), of Elizabethtown; three cousins, Fay Gray, DF Gray, and Shirley Wigginton; and other nieces and nephews, and two sisters-in-law.
Funeral services will be held at 2 p.m. Sunday, June 9, at William L. Danks Funeral Home in Beaver Dam, with Dr. Dale Carden presiding. Burial will follow in Sunnyside Cemetery in Beaver Dam. Friends may visit with Barbara’s family from 4 p.m. until 7 p.m. Saturday and 11 a.m. until the time of the service Sunday at the funeral home.
The family wishes to thank the staff of Ohio County Hospital and Hospice of Ohio County for their compassion and the excellent care they provided.
The family request that memorial contributions be made to Hospice of Ohio County, 1211 Main Street, Hartford, KY 42347 or if you have the opportunity, donate a coat or shop at Christmas time for someone in need.
Online condolences may be left for the family of Barbara Jean Gray Johnson by visiting her memorial tribute at www.danksfuneralhome.com.