Meet Your Neighbor - Joyce Johnson, 90 Years of Resilience

In a world that sometimes seems to create isolation, the Courier is launching a new feature entitled "Meet Your Neighbor." We hope you enjoy getting to know some of the fascinating people who live in our community.

Joyce Johnson has lived in Niwot for 32 years. Her determination, friendly nature, sparkling eyes and kindness mask the many hardships and tragedies she has faced throughout her long life.

The first word Johnson uses to describe herself is "resilient." She was raised in Connecticut by her mother and alcoholic father who at times squandered his income on gambling. During their leanest times, her mother also worked outside the home to support their family. Johnson, the oldest of four children, cared for her younger siblings and cooked meals. When she was 20 years old her father left the family.

Johnson married young and had five children in less than eight years. Two of her children died under tragic circumstances in their early 20s - a son drowned and a daughter was murdered. In between those tragedies her husband divorced her.

Johnson eventually had the opportunity to attend college and graduated at age 54. She worked at a preschool for a few years and then received a marriage proposal with two conditions attached. The first condition was that she had to agree to move with her new husband to Colorado to be close to his son. The second condition was that she had to accept his proposal immediately. They compromised on a 24-hour deadline so she could think it over.

She thought, "Colorado? Why not? And where is that on the map?" So she accepted the proposal. Unfortunately, that marriage was brief due to her husband's cancer diagnosis and subsequent death.

Johnson calls herself a "typical provincial New Englander," but soon she began a long, joyful time of life in Colorado.

She met a new neighbor, Victor, when another neighbor suggested that they might "get along." She started watching for him, then "ran out to meet him at the mailbox to 'pick up my own mail.'" When she returned to her home after 45 minutes, her daughter asked where she had been. Johnson responded, "I've been talking with my next husband!" Indeed, she had, although it took three years for him to "get the hint."

Thus began 26 very happy years together for Joyce and "Vic," as she refers to him, which included travels to over 30 countries on five continents highlighted by their many river cruises. They were active socially and hosted many Broncos game parties with friends and members of their blended families.

Johnson was a volunteer at Longmont United Hospital for many years. Her responsibilities shifted from changing sheets to wheeling patients to finally staffing the welcome desk. At age 85 she backed off from those roles but hasn't stopped serving the community. She has knitted over 1500 newborn caps for Longmont United Hospital and continues to make two each week.

Johnson is an avid reader which led her to starting a book discussion group 16 years ago. Between the group's books and her additional selections, she has read 1000 books during those years and has kept a record of every title.

Vic was several years older than Johnson and in about 2017 they decided to make modifications to their home to accommodate changes with age. About five years later Vic's health declined and he passed away peacefully in 2022.

Johnson said that adjusting to Vic's death has been the most difficult challenge of her life. However, in addition to "resilient," she uses the words "pragmatic and accepting" to describe herself. She credits her mother's calm reactions to her own difficulties and her way of "just dealing with things" with her ability to stay engaged in life.

Johnson attended the first meeting of the Niwot Community Connection (NCC) in 2021. She knew it would be important for her healing to become very active after Vic died and she says that "the NCC has truly been a lifesaver." She has made many new friends at the monthly meetings, canasta and trivia games, Thirsty Thursday and book discussions.

Johnson ultimately stresses the importance of "faith, family and friends" in helping her through so many tragedies. She attends Catholic mass weekly, aims to be a person of complete integrity and has confidence in an afterlife. She and Vic created strong and close connections between their families. Her daughter Allison and step-daughter Karin are the same age. They are close friends and even job-share a nursing position at Longmont United Hospital. She says her neighbor, Kristin Alger, has become "the daughter she lost."

Johnson and family members recently enjoyed a cruise to Cabo San Lucas to celebrate the milestone 90th birthday of this remarkable woman.

The Left Hand Valley Courier featured Joyce and Victor Johnson on Nov. 7, 2018.