Alice W. Johnson

Dr. Alice W. Johnson, age 90, of Downingtown, PA died peacefully on April 22, 2025: Earth Day – a fitting day since she was a master gardener. She left behind a family who adored her and a legacy of community service (as well as many coins, emery boards, and notes just in case we needed them). She is dearly missed.
Alice was born in 1935 in Summit, New Jersey to the late Charles E. Webbe and Eve Meison Webbe. She grew up in Waterbury, Connecticut with her parents and late sister, Peg W. Tester. She met the bright, sweet, and handsome Robert (Bob) C. Johnson, Sr. at Crosby High one night and never looked any farther. Alice and Bob were happily married for 63 years. He died in March 2019.
Alice was a stellar student at Crosby High, the University of Pennsylvania (graduating with a B.A. in Psychology), and Temple University in Philadelphia, where she earned her Masters and Doctorate degrees in Education. She traveled to Philly at night with a friend after a full day of work and three kids to manage. She even made dinner, although that usually involved cans or the frozen TV variety.
She began her career as a social worker in New Jersey and then, after relocating to Downingtown, worked at the Chester County Intermediate Unit first as a special education teacher and then as a Supervisor of Special Classes. From there Alice moved on to serve as Supervisor of Special Education for the West Chester Area School District and as Director of Pupil Personnel Services for the School District of Cheltenham Township, a post she held for ten years. She thereafter consulted for the Lower Merion School District, serving as Acting Director of Pupil Services, and for the North Penn School District as Acting Director of Special Education and Student Services until she fully retired at age 72.
In all of these roles she worked diligently and effectively to enhance the lives of students and integrate special education students into classrooms. Outside of work hours, her community and volunteer experience included service on the Uwchlan Township Planning Board, the Pennsylvania Department of Education Advisory Committee for Special Education, the Chester County Mental Health/Intellectual & Developmental Disabilities Advisory Board, and as a member of the Downingtown Area School Board, finishing her tenure there as Board President.
In retirement, Alice and Bob loved to travel or to just hang out on the back deck drinking a glass of wine and reading a good book, to play cards or share a meal with friends, and to tend to their many gardens. Alice also loved to create gourmet meals (and Bob enjoyed eating whatever she made). The kids showed up as often as they could, knowing her new creations in the kitchen far surpassed the canned pork and beans of their youth. She never really stopped working though, as she was on many volunteer boards and councils. But she always made time for visits from her kids and grandkids.
Alice is survived by her three children, Lisa W. Johnson (Ted Laarkamp), Robert C. Johnson, Jr., and Elizabeth A. Johnson (Michael Quinn); her four grandchildren, Stephen W. Laarkamp, Chase C. Johnson, Maia M. Quinn, and Ella R. Johnson; her nieces, Kim E. Tester (Brian Duda) and Kathy T. Luria, and her nephew, Jim C. Tester (April), as well as three grandnephews and the nieces and nephews she and Bob shared.
Friends and family are encouraged to celebrate Alice's memory by planting trees, perennials, and annuals in her honor.
A private memorial service will be held in June.