Ione Johnson in unit #1007, a gal who is known and loved by everyone in the complex. She was born in Powers Lake, N. Dakota, one of
five children. Now, she and her sister Pearl Helgeson Simlic are the only ones left of that family.
After High School, Ione attended Business School in Minot, N. Dakota. "Then the war came," says Ione. She and two bright eyed girlfriends from
Business School, with their sheepskins under their arms, and stars in their eyes headed out for Seattle where the big bucks could be earned and the service men could be found. In 1943 she met and married handsome soldier boy Bob Johnson. When Bob was deployed she went to live with his parents. Sad to say, Bob never saw his beautiful son Bob Jr., as he was killed in Okinawa in 1945. Ione later remarried and has a daughter Kriss Ann Hook, son in law, Clifford, and three grandsons in Seattle. Son Bob married and has two daughters in Minneapolis.
Ione first came to the Village in 1993 to visit her sister . Her husband
Kenneth Johnson had recently passed away , and a visit to Pearlie was a
real treat. She was so impressed with all the good times Pearl was having
that she purchased #1007 right on the spot, and came back the following
year to join in the fun and games. She has never ceased to enjoy life
here, and can still, at the drop of a hat, tap dance to the tune of Dark Town Strutters Ball.
Ione's first job was with Minot Northern Power as a secretary. She was
also the secretary at the High School for a short time, managed a Teenage
Girl's Store at the Southfield Mall in Minneapolis, and was a secretary
at Boeing Aircraft in Seattle for a number of years.
Her friend Cort Olson was with her here at Apache Wells for fifteen
years. Now Cort is in an Assisted Living facility, and loves to hear from one and all.
Don't tell anyone, but on April 21, 2012, Ione will mark her 90th
birthday. She hopes to sell her unit sometime before then and will move
to Spokane to be near her daughter. Until then, we hope to see her
smiling face at Potlucks and Saturday morning coffee, and we look for the
one more tap dance when the music starts.