September 13, 1943 – September 9, 2023
Armand Lee Johnson, age 79 of Beecher, IL, formerly of Glenwood, IL, and Cedar Lake, IN, passed away at his home on Saturday, September 9, 2023. He is survived by his beloved wife of 56 years: Karen (nee Osborne) Johnson; children: Kevin and Gayle (Pankiewicz) Johnson, Kelly (Johnson) and Chris York, and Eric and Shanna (Sullivan) Johnson. Also surviving are his grandchildren: Ellen Johnson, Nick (Josh Kime) Johnson, Michael York, Kayla York, Lucas Johnson, Ryan York, Logan Johnson, Amy Johnson, and Lexie Johnson; and great grandchild: Koda York. Lee was preceded in death by his parents: Armand and Leatha (nee White) Johnson and sister: Doris Banta.
Friends are invited to visit with Lee’s family on Thursday, September 14, from 4:00 – 8:00 PM at the Schroeder-Lauer Funeral Home, 3227 Ridge Rd., Lansing, IL. Lee will be laid to rest in Danville Military Cemetery in Danville, IL, on Friday, September 15, 2023. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made in Lee’s name to Folds of Honor, a nonprofit organization that helps provide families of fallen and disabled service members and first responders educational scholarships: www.foldsofhonor.org
Known his entire life by family and friends by his middle name Lee, he grew up in Lansing, IL, and was a standout athlete at TF South High School. He was drafted by the Chicago White Sox out of high School, but instead went to the University of Illinois where he played football and was on the practice squad for the basketball team.
Karen remembers watching Lee play football when she was just 13 years old, and she thought he was dreamy. They were just friends throughout high school because Lee was a few years older than she was. While home from college and attending church service at the Lansing United Methodist Church, he happened to sit near Karen and decided to ask her on a date. They married in 1967 and celebrated 56 years of marriage this past August.
While in college, Lee also joined the Army ROTC. He and Karen spent much of his active duty time in Texas and Korea, but he decided to become a Reserve Officer after their second child was born. At that point, they relocated to Glenwood, IL, and he took a teaching job at Rich South High School in Matteson.
Lee spent 25 years as a teacher and coach at Rich South, but was also very active in the community. He was President of the Glenwood United Way, and a Boy Scout troop leader, and he spent many years coaching youth football, basketball, and baseball for the Glenwood leagues. In 1995, he retired from the Army as a Lieutenant Colonel after a 28-year career. He retired from Rich South after 25 years and relocated to Cedar Lake, IN, where he taught shop classes for five more years. After his final retirement, Lee and Karen traveled the world, visiting a myriad of countries on several continents. In 2014, they renewed their marriage vows in an old church in Scotland that he found while researching family genealogy.
He will be missed.
