Claudia L. Johnson

Obituary of
Claudia Lee Johnson
Arrival: May 9, 1928 Departure: April 11, 2025
Claudia Lee Johnson was born May 9, 1928, in Thomasville, N.C. She was the second child of Claude Willie and Francis Abrams who both preceded her in death.
As a child in Thomasville, she listened to music broadcasts on the radio and dreamed of becoming a country and western singer! Growing up in a Christian household, Claudia accepted Jesus Christ as her Lord and Savior at an early age.
The entire family moved to Cleveland Ohio in the mid "1940's" and initially settled in the Central Ave. neighborhood. Claudia attended Central High School and was active in the "A Cappella" Choir. Known as "shorty", Claudia graduated from Central in January, 1947.
Claudia also became a member of St. Timothy Missionary Baptist Church in Cleveland and given her excellent soprano voice, she joined the church choir.
She was introduced to Mr. Henry Ford of Bessemer, Alabama and from that relationship her first son Christopher was born in 1948. Years later, while attending a gospel concert at St. Timothy, she met Mr. Ernest Johnson of Indianapolis, Indiana who sang in a gospel quartet. After a brief courtship they united in marriage and her second son Jeffrey was born in 1954. Unfortunately, their marriage didn't last, resulting in divorce some years later.
The family moved from Central Ave. to the Glenville neighborhood where they resided for many years. In the early "1960s", Claude & Frances decided to move the family to a new home in the Lee Harvard neighborhood of Cleveland. Claudia then decided to join The Lee Road Baptist Church and became a faithful member of both the Gospel and Sanctuary choirs.
After high school graduation, Claudia obtained employment in the insurance industry with Supreme Liberty Life Insurance Company as an office administrator where she excelled in secretarial skills and became known as a great organizer and accurate record keeper. Recognizing this, several Supreme (Debit) agents approached her to help maintain their premium collection books which she did for them on the side. She later became employed with the Travelers Insurance Company and Continental Casualty Insurance Company from which she retired in November 1989.
Claudia loved to sing Hymns and Praise and Worship songs. In her early retirement years her Morning Devotion consisted of reading from The Book of Psalms followed by listening to a CD with a collection of praise and worship songs. With increasing age, several infirmities slowed her down and she was no longer able to attend church on a regular basis. Everyone that met and knew her said she was a very sweet and loving person.
Claudia was the last of her siblings to go home to be with The Lord. In addition to her parents, preceding her in death were her sister Rosetta (Carl) and her brothers Marion and Osborne (Anita). Claudia is survived by her sons Christopher Abrams (Carmen) and Jeffrey Johnson, grandchildren Michael (Monica) and Eric Abrams, great granddaughters Jayda and Jasmyn (Abrams), niece Tanya Alvis (Lewis), great nephews Chris Alvis and Lewis Alvis Jr. and many other relatives and friends.
We appreciate the life she lived on earth and the example she was to all who met her. She will be missed. However, we rejoice knowing that she will join the "Family Choir" and continue to sing praises to God in Heaven!
Respectfully Submitted,
The Family
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