Phyllis Lorraine Johnson

BEDFORD - Phyllis Lorraine Johnson, 96, passed away on April 3, 2024.
Graveside Service: 11:00 a.m. Tuesday, April 16, 2024, in Greenwood Memorial Park.
Phyllis was born on October 12, 1927 in Plymouth, Indiana to parents, Seth Samuel and Emma Gail Stockman. She moved to Texas at the age of 19 and lived in or near Fort Worth for the rest of her life. She was a registered nurse in Fort Worth for over 30 years. She loved taking care of patients and spent the last ten years of her career working at Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine.
Mother and Daddy were an unlikely pair, a true Texas cowboy and a young woman from Indiana. They took us kids on all kinds of adventures; family vacations in the station wagon, family reunions at state parks, camping, hunting, fishing, arrowhead hunting, water skiing and finally building a cabin on a mountain in Oklahoma. Daddy was an adventurer and mother was there for all of it.
We were raised in a comfortable, very clean and cozy home with home cooked meals nearly every night; Mother's pot roast and meatloaf were some of our favorites. My dad requested that we have dessert after every evening meal. Sometimes she made pudding or chocolate drop cookies or some kind of pie. But the family favorite was a chocolate sheet cake, also known in our house as "100lb cake". Cooking for her family was a labor of love.
Growing up, our home was always full of animals. I think of how tolerant she was, how busy it already was with four kids and how many messes there must have been every day. At one time, I remember we had two dogs, a cat and a pet squirrel outside and an inside dog and cat that both had babies near the same time. The only animal complaint I remember hearing from her was about Bullet, our bird dog, who loved to drive her crazy by pulling the clean sheets off of the clothesline. Letting us kids and her husband have all the animals we wanted was definitely a show of patience and love.
Louise told me that mother got her "particularness" from her dad. I thought that was such a nice way to put it. Mother was a perfectionist and loved her routines. But isn't that who you want as your nurse? Absolutely! As a young mother of four she went to LVN school. And then in her forties, she went back to school and earned her RN. As one of the oldest students in her class, she did not let that intimidate her or deter her from excelling. It was a great career choice for her. She took pride in taking care of her patients, making sure they always received the best possible care. Sometimes that meant standing up to arrogant doctors and bending a few rules. Getting to work with her sister the last ten years of her career was the highlight. She was an excellent nurse and throughout her career I know many patients and coworkers felt her love.
There were many things mother loved in addition to her family and career. She loved working in her yard. She called it "dirt therapy". She loved flowers of any kind, but especially roses. And she always had a lot of indoor plants that thrived under her care. Mother loved shoes too! Growing up I remember her closet being stacked with rows and rows of shoe boxes! She also loved to read! After retirement, she belonged to two book clubs and was a frequent visitor to the library. She loved pretty pajamas and robes too! Her days always ended with a lengthy facial routine and matching pajamas before crawling into a beautifully made bed with "hospital corners", of course.
Mother was one of six children and she maintained a close relationship with all of her siblings over the years. "Gail's gang", as they were lovingly called, always had plenty of stories about growing up together during the depression. And anytime they were together there was a ton of laughter and a lot of love.
In the last few years, anytime she was asked about her health or life goals, her response was always the same. She wanted to live to see her children, grandchildren and great grandchildren be happy and healthy. She enjoyed seeing pictures and videos of everyone's daily life. She was truly interested in what we were cooking, what we were working on, what the grandkids were doing and what sport the great grandkids were playing. She wanted to know how Louise's golf game was, how Taylor and Glen's jobs were going and what Annie was learning today. She kept in touch with her brother Dick and his family and their lives. She was active on Facebook and kept up with many of her extended family as well. Every day she asked about her great-grandchildren, Tristan and Raina & Jax and Rylee- "what are they up to today"? And every night she sent out multiple "goodnight/sweet dreams/love you" texts letting us know she was thinking about us and loved us.
Our Mother loved her life and loved her family. Now she can rest peacefully with her husband and sons in heaven and we can all remember that we were all loved by her very much.
Phyllis was preceded in death by her parents; her husband, Doyle Johnson; and her sons, James and John Johnson.
Phyllis is survived by daughters, Janet Sewell and husband, Tommy, Joycelyn Tongate and husband, Dickie, daughter-in-law, Christina Johnson; grandchildren, Cristy Ristau and husband, Brandon; Katlyn Hager and husband, Jesse, Jennifer Tifft and husband, Kelly, Logan Sewell, Julie Brashear and husband, Jimmy, Jimmy, Keaton and Johnie Johnson; great-granchildren, Rylee and Jax Hager; Raina and Tristan Tifft, Tanner and Mason Smith; brother, Dick Stockman; and sister, Louise Goodwin.