Janell J. Johnson

Janell "Janie" (Scriver) Johnson, age 75, of Watertown, SD, passed away on Thursday, March 16, 2023 at Avantara in Milbank, SD. Memorial service will be at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday, May 20, 2023, at Crawford-Osthus Funeral Chapel in Watertown. Scott Dempster will officiate.
Visitation will be at the Crawford-Osthus Funeral Chapel in Watertown on Saturday, May 20, 2023, from 1:00 p.m. until service time.
Janell was born on December 24, 1947, in Watertown, SD, to Maynard and Marian "Dolly" (Hansen) Scriver. She grew up with her three siblings (Lonnie, Marian, and Ryan) in South Shore, South Dakota. Janie loved fishing with her dad in Punished Woman's Lake, spending time outside and exploring the woods. She graduated from High School in 1966 and went on to graduate from the Stuarts School of Hairstyling in Aberdeen SD.
On January 24th, 1968 she gave birth to her daughter, Tami. In 1975 Janie started working for Herzberger's in the Watertown Mall. She was a top salesperson for Estee Lauder cosmetics and won numerous awards and accolades before she retired in 2005. She loved every minute of her retirement. She spent her time going to garage sales and thrift stores, and helping anyone that would ask. She had a sixth sense for locating anything. All you had to do is give her a mission to find something and she would find it. Need a unique and beautiful lampshade? Ask Janie, she would find you one. Lost your keys? Call Janie. She would come over and magically find them in 10 minutes. She loved to laugh and play April Fools' pranks on her brother Ryan. One April fools' day Ryan opened his oatmeal container only to find it moving and alive with mealworms. He's still not sure how she managed to sneak them in there. Janie was not only a talented photographer but also an award-winning one. Her specialty was capturing stunning photos of birds, which she did from the comfort of her living room. Janie created a bird sanctuary outside her window, which provided the perfect setting for her photography. Her photos were truly breathtaking. Janie was an animal lover (cats in particular), a collector, a poet, a tinkerer, and a great friend to many.
Janie is survived by her daughter Tami Johnson, her brother Lonnie Scriver, her sister Marian (Scriver) Anderson (Cliff), and her brother Ryan Scriver (Beverly), nine nieces and nephews, and one cat, Misty.
Janie is preceded in death by her parents Maynard and Marian "Dolly" (Hansen) Scriver, sister-in-law Ruthie Scriver (Lonnie) and 2 cats, Fritz and Snickles.
Arrangements by Crawford-Osthus Funeral Chapel www.crawfordosthus.com Watertown, Hayti, DeSmet, Bryant
To send flowers
to the family, please visit our floral store.