Obituary of Elenor Rafferty Johnson

Elenor Rafferty Johnson of Ypsilanti Township, formerly of Romeo passed away peacefully with her family by her side at her daughter's house on Wednesday, January 31, 2018. Born in a one-room house in Ten Lake Township, Minnesota on August 18, 1929 she was delivered into this world by her grandmother. Their family home had no electricity or indoor running water. As a young girl she attended Buck Lake School and loved to wander the neighboring woods and swim in the lakes of northern Minnesota. In the spring she loved to snuggle up to their cow for warmth with a good book while she soaked up the sun after a long Minnesota winter. When she was sixteen, her family moved into town, which gave her the opportunity to attend and graduate from Bemidji High School. In 1948, she married Lloyd A. Johnson of Bagley Minnesota in Minneapolis. She and Lloyd started out in Bemidji, then moved to Grand Forks, ND before moving to Michigan where Lloyd took a job as a design engineer at Chrysler Corporation. Together they raised a happy, boisterous family of 9 children and enjoyed square dancing with the Country Cuzzins of Romeo. Elenor was always an avid reader with an insatiable, lifelong quest for knowledge. She was particularly interested in history which led to her love of antiques. She was an incredibly creative seamstress, sewing clothing for her children and doll clothes for their dolls. Her daughters' wedding dresses were some of her most creative designs. In later years she turned her attention to quilts, hand-sewing and hand-piecing quilts for her family. With such a large family, she spent much of each summer and fall, canning more than 1,000 jars of produce each year. Her spaghetti sauce was well known and enjoyed by her family and friends who came for dinner. A devoted mother and wife - and so much more, she is survived by her 9 children, Brad (Stacy) Johnson, Almont, MI; Boyce Johnson, Ypsilanti, MI; Bryce (Jane) Johnson Algonac; MI; Sharmin (Gary) Recinella, Algonquin, IL; Bryan (Tracy) Johnson, Almont, MI; Sheila Phillips, Croswell, MI; Shawn (Jim) Rathbun, Houghton, MI; Sherri (Brad) Brewer, Washington Twp, MI; Sheryl (Dave) Anderson, Shelby Twp, MI, and her honerary son Joseph Dietlin; 26 grandchildren; 22 great-grandchildren; sister Mavis Jenkauski of Wilton, Minnesota and many nieces and nephews. She was pre-deceased by husband Lloyd; son-in-law William Phillips; parents Cora and Edward Rafferty; siblings Alice, Walt, Winnifred, Boyce, Elva. Should friends desire, memorial contributions may be sent to the University of North Dakota Alumni Association Foundation: https://undalumni.org/home. A celebration of life and memorial service will be held on February 24, 2018, 3:00 pm, Hilton Garden Inn, 200 Wilshire Drive, Troy, Michigan, 48084.