Married four times. The first and last linked here.
Family living on a farm near Cassils, Alberta, Canada by the time Lester was 5 years old.
Education: Up to grade 8
Met first wife Florence while she was teaching in Cassils, and married her in her family home near Red Willow, Alberta.
The couple lived near Cassils, Alberta, then near Rocky Mountain House, Alberta, then back to Cassils.
Winter of 1943-44, Lester moved his family through Vancouver, BC to Washington State. The Canadian government wanted to draft Lester into its army, it had little tolerance for Conscientious Objectors and no recognition of Undulent Fever, a recurring illness which Lester had. The U.S. armed forces were better at both of these things, and Lester was a U.S. citizen, so he managed to get his family to the States a jump ahead of the Canadian Draft. Their first location in Washington was near Shelton, west of Tacoma, where several of Lester's Aunts and Uncles lived. Then to Prescott for a year, then to College Place, Washington.
During that time, Lester worked for farmers, did bee-keeping, house construction, putting up those Burma Shave signs along highways, bought a 40 acre farm of his own, and took up sheep farming. Other people wanted to build houses on Lester's land, so it was sub-divided and sold as housing lots. That region was know for many years as Johnsonville.
Since an airport was nearby, Lester took flying lessons. He gained his private license, then commercial license, then instructor's rating. For a year or two, about 1947-49, Lester was teaching veterans to fly. The government education credits for vets could be used this way, and a lot of vets did so.
Spring of 1951, the family moved to Hot Springs, Montana, again sheep farming. He would return by himself to College Place, Washington to work again for a contractor, building houses in Pasco and Kennewick, about 50 miles west of College Place. On return to Montana, he worked for a farmer in bee-keeping again, teaching his two sons how to care for bees.
By 1955, Lester was building houses himself in Montana, using the blueprints of the houses he built in Washington. After completing several of these, there were enough funds to buy a 3 quarter section farm near Red Willow, Alberta (where his wife's family lived), and the family moved up in the summer of 1956. That farm had grain and sheep.
Around 1958, his sister Eileen and her husband lured Lester up to Alaska for salmon fishing. He would return every summer for 12 years to continue it.
Lester & Florence separated in the summer of 1969, and divorced 1970. Around 1971 he married a woman from Saskatchewan, a marriage which lasted about a year. When this marriage broke up, Lester moved to Washington, shortly taking up residence in Waitsburg where he married Adelle, a nurse. He spent one summer driving farm machinery in this area. After a year there, he divorced again.
Lester traveled a bit, soon settling in Sun City, Arizona. In 1976 while living in Sun City, his first wife, Florence, died of cancer. Lester stated that he felt like "my wife is dead". In the next two years, Lester renewed acquaintance with Anna Lee Travis, a widow he had met at Waitsburg, and in 1979 they were married in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Lester and Anna Lee were happy together. About 1983 they took a tramp steamer on a trip around the Pacific. Lester joined the Sun City Posse and was proud to belong with this prestigious organization. On one occasion, he was one of the guards along the route taken by a presidential tour. Lester was particularly proud of the Grapefruit tree in his yard, where the grapefruits were so sweet you could eat them fresh from the tree with no sugar.
Lester had a heart attack in 1988 or 1989 and technically died, but was resuscitated moments later. He recovered, but said that it wasn't worth it. The pain of recovery was too much to contemplate it ever happening again. He took his life on March 9, 1990, using the pistol he had carried as a Sun City Posse member. It is theorized that he felt another heart attack and didn't want to go through the pain of recovery again.
Lester taught his sons to enjoy diligent, hard work; to earn their own way; and that marriage was for a life time. Lester always practiced the first two of these, and his sons think he regretted that he didn't practice the third.
Family living on a farm near Cassils, Alberta, Canada by the time Lester was 5 years old.
Education: Up to grade 8
Met first wife Florence while she was teaching in Cassils, and married her in her family home near Red Willow, Alberta.
The couple lived near Cassils, Alberta, then near Rocky Mountain House, Alberta, then back to Cassils.
Winter of 1943-44, Lester moved his family through Vancouver, BC to Washington State. The Canadian government wanted to draft Lester into its army, it had little tolerance for Conscientious Objectors and no recognition of Undulent Fever, a recurring illness which Lester had. The U.S. armed forces were better at both of these things, and Lester was a U.S. citizen, so he managed to get his family to the States a jump ahead of the Canadian Draft. Their first location in Washington was near Shelton, west of Tacoma, where several of Lester's Aunts and Uncles lived. Then to Prescott for a year, then to College Place, Washington.
During that time, Lester worked for farmers, did bee-keeping, house construction, putting up those Burma Shave signs along highways, bought a 40 acre farm of his own, and took up sheep farming. Other people wanted to build houses on Lester's land, so it was sub-divided and sold as housing lots. That region was know for many years as Johnsonville.
Since an airport was nearby, Lester took flying lessons. He gained his private license, then commercial license, then instructor's rating. For a year or two, about 1947-49, Lester was teaching veterans to fly. The government education credits for vets could be used this way, and a lot of vets did so.
Spring of 1951, the family moved to Hot Springs, Montana, again sheep farming. He would return by himself to College Place, Washington to work again for a contractor, building houses in Pasco and Kennewick, about 50 miles west of College Place. On return to Montana, he worked for a farmer in bee-keeping again, teaching his two sons how to care for bees.
By 1955, Lester was building houses himself in Montana, using the blueprints of the houses he built in Washington. After completing several of these, there were enough funds to buy a 3 quarter section farm near Red Willow, Alberta (where his wife's family lived), and the family moved up in the summer of 1956. That farm had grain and sheep.
Around 1958, his sister Eileen and her husband lured Lester up to Alaska for salmon fishing. He would return every summer for 12 years to continue it.
Lester & Florence separated in the summer of 1969, and divorced 1970. Around 1971 he married a woman from Saskatchewan, a marriage which lasted about a year. When this marriage broke up, Lester moved to Washington, shortly taking up residence in Waitsburg where he married Adelle, a nurse. He spent one summer driving farm machinery in this area. After a year there, he divorced again.
Lester traveled a bit, soon settling in Sun City, Arizona. In 1976 while living in Sun City, his first wife, Florence, died of cancer. Lester stated that he felt like "my wife is dead". In the next two years, Lester renewed acquaintance with Anna Lee Travis, a widow he had met at Waitsburg, and in 1979 they were married in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Lester and Anna Lee were happy together. About 1983 they took a tramp steamer on a trip around the Pacific. Lester joined the Sun City Posse and was proud to belong with this prestigious organization. On one occasion, he was one of the guards along the route taken by a presidential tour. Lester was particularly proud of the Grapefruit tree in his yard, where the grapefruits were so sweet you could eat them fresh from the tree with no sugar.
Lester had a heart attack in 1988 or 1989 and technically died, but was resuscitated moments later. He recovered, but said that it wasn't worth it. The pain of recovery was too much to contemplate it ever happening again. He took his life on March 9, 1990, using the pistol he had carried as a Sun City Posse member. It is theorized that he felt another heart attack and didn't want to go through the pain of recovery again.
Lester taught his sons to enjoy diligent, hard work; to earn their own way; and that marriage was for a life time. Lester always practiced the first two of these, and his sons think he regretted that he didn't practice the third.
Married four times. The first and last linked here.
Family living on a farm near Cassils, Alberta, Canada by the time Lester was 5 years old.
Education: Up to grade 8
Met first wife Florence while she was teaching in Cassils, and married her in her family home near Red Willow, Alberta.
The couple lived near Cassils, Alberta, then near Rocky Mountain House, Alberta, then back to Cassils.
Winter of 1943-44, Lester moved his family through Vancouver, BC to Washington State. The Canadian government wanted to draft Lester into its army, it had little tolerance for Conscientious Objectors and no recognition of Undulent Fever, a recurring illness which Lester had. The U.S. armed forces were better at both of these things, and Lester was a U.S. citizen, so he managed to get his family to the States a jump ahead of the Canadian Draft. Their first location in Washington was near Shelton, west of Tacoma, where several of Lester's Aunts and Uncles lived. Then to Prescott for a year, then to College Place, Washington.
During that time, Lester worked for farmers, did bee-keeping, house construction, putting up those Burma Shave signs along highways, bought a 40 acre farm of his own, and took up sheep farming. Other people wanted to build houses on Lester's land, so it was sub-divided and sold as housing lots. That region was know for many years as Johnsonville.
Since an airport was nearby, Lester took flying lessons. He gained his private license, then commercial license, then instructor's rating. For a year or two, about 1947-49, Lester was teaching veterans to fly. The government education credits for vets could be used this way, and a lot of vets did so.
Spring of 1951, the family moved to Hot Springs, Montana, again sheep farming. He would return by himself to College Place, Washington to work again for a contractor, building houses in Pasco and Kennewick, about 50 miles west of College Place. On return to Montana, he worked for a farmer in bee-keeping again, teaching his two sons how to care for bees.
By 1955, Lester was building houses himself in Montana, using the blueprints of the houses he built in Washington. After completing several of these, there were enough funds to buy a 3 quarter section farm near Red Willow, Alberta (where his wife's family lived), and the family moved up in the summer of 1956. That farm had grain and sheep.
Around 1958, his sister Eileen and her husband lured Lester up to Alaska for salmon fishing. He would return every summer for 12 years to continue it.
Lester & Florence separated in the summer of 1969, and divorced 1970. Around 1971 he married a woman from Saskatchewan, a marriage which lasted about a year. When this marriage broke up, Lester moved to Washington, shortly taking up residence in Waitsburg where he married Adelle, a nurse. He spent one summer driving farm machinery in this area. After a year there, he divorced again.
Lester traveled a bit, soon settling in Sun City, Arizona. In 1976 while living in Sun City, his first wife, Florence, died of cancer. Lester stated that he felt like "my wife is dead". In the next two years, Lester renewed acquaintance with Anna Lee Travis, a widow he had met at Waitsburg, and in 1979 they were married in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Lester and Anna Lee were happy together. About 1983 they took a tramp steamer on a trip around the Pacific. Lester joined the Sun City Posse and was proud to belong with this prestigious organization. On one occasion, he was one of the guards along the route taken by a presidential tour. Lester was particularly proud of the Grapefruit tree in his yard, where the grapefruits were so sweet you could eat them fresh from the tree with no sugar.
Lester had a heart attack in 1988 or 1989 and technically died, but was resuscitated moments later. He recovered, but said that it wasn't worth it. The pain of recovery was too much to contemplate it ever happening again. He took his life on March 9, 1990, using the pistol he had carried as a Sun City Posse member. It is theorized that he felt another heart attack and didn't want to go through the pain of recovery again.
Lester taught his sons to enjoy diligent, hard work; to earn their own way; and that marriage was for a life time. Lester always practiced the first two of these, and his sons think he regretted that he didn't practice the third.
Family living on a farm near Cassils, Alberta, Canada by the time Lester was 5 years old.
Education: Up to grade 8
Met first wife Florence while she was teaching in Cassils, and married her in her family home near Red Willow, Alberta.
The couple lived near Cassils, Alberta, then near Rocky Mountain House, Alberta, then back to Cassils.
Winter of 1943-44, Lester moved his family through Vancouver, BC to Washington State. The Canadian government wanted to draft Lester into its army, it had little tolerance for Conscientious Objectors and no recognition of Undulent Fever, a recurring illness which Lester had. The U.S. armed forces were better at both of these things, and Lester was a U.S. citizen, so he managed to get his family to the States a jump ahead of the Canadian Draft. Their first location in Washington was near Shelton, west of Tacoma, where several of Lester's Aunts and Uncles lived. Then to Prescott for a year, then to College Place, Washington.
During that time, Lester worked for farmers, did bee-keeping, house construction, putting up those Burma Shave signs along highways, bought a 40 acre farm of his own, and took up sheep farming. Other people wanted to build houses on Lester's land, so it was sub-divided and sold as housing lots. That region was know for many years as Johnsonville.
Since an airport was nearby, Lester took flying lessons. He gained his private license, then commercial license, then instructor's rating. For a year or two, about 1947-49, Lester was teaching veterans to fly. The government education credits for vets could be used this way, and a lot of vets did so.
Spring of 1951, the family moved to Hot Springs, Montana, again sheep farming. He would return by himself to College Place, Washington to work again for a contractor, building houses in Pasco and Kennewick, about 50 miles west of College Place. On return to Montana, he worked for a farmer in bee-keeping again, teaching his two sons how to care for bees.
By 1955, Lester was building houses himself in Montana, using the blueprints of the houses he built in Washington. After completing several of these, there were enough funds to buy a 3 quarter section farm near Red Willow, Alberta (where his wife's family lived), and the family moved up in the summer of 1956. That farm had grain and sheep.
Around 1958, his sister Eileen and her husband lured Lester up to Alaska for salmon fishing. He would return every summer for 12 years to continue it.
Lester & Florence separated in the summer of 1969, and divorced 1970. Around 1971 he married a woman from Saskatchewan, a marriage which lasted about a year. When this marriage broke up, Lester moved to Washington, shortly taking up residence in Waitsburg where he married Adelle, a nurse. He spent one summer driving farm machinery in this area. After a year there, he divorced again.
Lester traveled a bit, soon settling in Sun City, Arizona. In 1976 while living in Sun City, his first wife, Florence, died of cancer. Lester stated that he felt like "my wife is dead". In the next two years, Lester renewed acquaintance with Anna Lee Travis, a widow he had met at Waitsburg, and in 1979 they were married in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Lester and Anna Lee were happy together. About 1983 they took a tramp steamer on a trip around the Pacific. Lester joined the Sun City Posse and was proud to belong with this prestigious organization. On one occasion, he was one of the guards along the route taken by a presidential tour. Lester was particularly proud of the Grapefruit tree in his yard, where the grapefruits were so sweet you could eat them fresh from the tree with no sugar.
Lester had a heart attack in 1988 or 1989 and technically died, but was resuscitated moments later. He recovered, but said that it wasn't worth it. The pain of recovery was too much to contemplate it ever happening again. He took his life on March 9, 1990, using the pistol he had carried as a Sun City Posse member. It is theorized that he felt another heart attack and didn't want to go through the pain of recovery again.
Lester taught his sons to enjoy diligent, hard work; to earn their own way; and that marriage was for a life time. Lester always practiced the first two of these, and his sons think he regretted that he didn't practice the third.
Inscription
In Loving Memory
Lester S. Johnson
Oct. 24, 1914 - Mar. 9, 1990
Gravesite Details
Grave marker is right against the fence, in the northeast corner of the cemetery.
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