Dorothy Tucker Johnson

Funeral services for Dorothy Tucker Johnson, 84, of Monroe, will be held at 2:00 PM Saturday, December 13, 2014, in the chapel at Mulhearn Funeral Home, Sterlington Road, Monroe, with Rev. Richard Turnley officiating. Interment will follow at Mulhearn Memorial Park Cemetery.Dorothy Tucker Johnson was born November 29, 1930 and passed from this life December 6, 2014.Born on a farm in northern Union Parish to Morris B. and Alberta Odom Tucker, she climbed trees, tromped through fields, chased cows, picked cotton and anything else her brothers did. A bout with polio at age eleven did little to slow her down. Family meant everything to her all throughout her life. Family gatherings during her childhood always included music. Her brothers played numerous instruments and were in bluegrass bands…Bobby on the guitar and Ralph on the banjo. Her father sang bass in a quartet.After graduation from Farmerville High School, she moved to Monroe to attend Northeast Louisiana State College (now ULM). Many lifelong friendships were formed there. She was the first graduate in Home Economics. It was also there that she met her future husband Jason R. Johnson whom she married in 1952.Until her marriage she was a member of the Baptist Church. Upon marriage at First Methodist Church of Monroe, she joined her husband’s church. She and Jase became members of Memorial United Methodist Church where, except for a few years when they helped Rev. Forrest Blount establish St. Mark’s United Methodist Church, they were members until their deaths. She held every office at Memorial except for Lay Leader. She taught the 50/50 Sunday School Class until her health prevented her from attending church. She loved her Lord!In 1958, she was hired to teach at Neville High School…a job that was her pride until her passing. During the years, she taught Home Economics, Chemistry and Consumer Education to countless young people. She spent hours counseling students, sponsoring clubs, chaperoning events, and working sporting events. She coordinated the Homecoming Court yearly until her retirement. Although she was forced to retire in the 1980’s when she could no longer climb the three flights of stairs to the Home Economics Department due to post polio syndrome, she remained a loyal Neville Tiger until passing. The annual Neville/Ouachita game was interesting in the Johnson household with her teaching at Neville, her daughter graduating from Neville and her husband and son graduating from Ouachita. She had zero tolerance for derogatory comments by either side however. Subsequently three of her grandchildren were Neville graduates, one graduated from Ouachita and her fifth and final grandchild is a member of the Class of 2016.She enjoyed working in her yard often getting up at dawn to beat the summer heat. She loved people. She would talk with anyone anywhere from Monroe to Scotland to Gulf Shores. By the end of the conversation, she would know practically everything about the other person.In 2013, just days before she was to help move her granddaughter Margaret to Auburn University and visit her other granddaughter Sara’s university Georgia Tech, she fell and broke her hip while watering her yard. Life was never the same thereafter. Although she continued to follow her family with frequent visits and phone calls, she was not longer able to attend her grandsons’ ballgames as before. She could have been counted on to be in the stands supporting Lee in football, Jason Thomas in baseball and Hunter in both.She leaves behind her daughter Susan Johnson Jacks; her son Jason Johnson and daughter-in-law Lisa; grandchildren Lee Jacks, Jason Thomas Johnson, Sara Jacks, Margaret Jacks and Hunter Johnson; sister-in-law Nancy Johnson (all of Monroe); Sally Dupuy of Atlanta, Georgia, Pat Tucker of Athens, Louisiana and Jean Tucker of Farmerville and numerous nieces, nephews and cousins.She was preceded in death by her husband Jason R. Johnson, parents Morris and Alberta Tucker, brothers Revis, Bobby and Ralph Tucker and sister Ollie Vee Hollis.Pallbearers will be her grandsons and David Garner, Scott Tripp and Tommy Fuller.The family wishes to thank Dr. Greg Green, Dr. Bob Seegers and Dr. Collins Coon for caring for her during the years.Visitation will be from 12:00 PM Noon until service time Saturday, December 13, 2014 at the funeral home.Memorials may be made to Memorial United Methodist Church, 401 Sherrouse Street, Monroe, LA; Neville Alumni and Friends Association, 600 Forsythe Avenue, Monroe and St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital.Online Registry/Condolences: www.mulhearnfuneralhome.comMulhearn Funeral HomeSterlington RoadMonroe, LA