Mary Jane Johnson

MaryJane (Ambridge) Johnson passed away peacefully on June 8, 2026, in Bloomington, Minnesota, at the age of 102. The 7th child of Charles and Mary Hearn Ambridge, she was born on October 14, 1923, in the Village of Fort Plain, New York.

An outgoing child, MaryJane was a born entertainer. As a child soloist in her church choir, she was often told she had the voice of an angel (until a tonsillectomy took her vocal range in addition to her tonsils!). She was a popular student and cheerleader in her high school, but her goals were much higher. Upon her graduation and against her mother’s wishes, she decided to leave her small village and head to the big city of Bridgeport, Connecticut, to study nursing at St. Vincent’s Hospital. It was there that she made lifelong friends and pursued her life career. She advanced her nursing studies at the Catholic University in Washington, D.C.

Like most in her generation, MaryJane survived hard times during the depression and growing unrest throughout the world. Prior to the US involvement in World War II, she met her future husband, Julius (“Sonny”) Johnson, Jr. of Georgetown, CT. They were on a date on December 7, 1941, when the car radio blared the news of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Shortly thereafter, Sonny, like many of his friends, enlisted in the Army Air Corps, where he saw action in the Pacific as a tail gunner on a Mitchell B-25 bomber. MaryJane wished to contribute as an army/air corps nurse, but that wish was not to be granted.

Soon after the War ended, they were married and welcomed the arrival of their daughter Maureen. They settled in Georgetown, where MaryJane’s public health nursing career began as she was hired as the Town Nurse of Redding, CT. It was during that tenure that their family grew with the arrival of daughters Patricia (PJ), Deborah, and Kathleen.

As Town Nurse, MaryJane—along with Town Doctor James McElroy—was tasked with the stressful assignment of vaccinating citizens of the area to prevent typhoid after the tragic, historic Flood of 1955 that devastated the area.

Tragically, in 1957, the family suffered the loss of Deborah to a rare childhood cancer. Two years later, the family welcomed their only son, Julius III (JJ). MaryJane continued her career in nursing, performing private duty assignments—in addition to her duties to townspeople in need of care—and as a school nurse. Her final assignment was at John Read Middle School in Redding, CT. Former students will testify that she “could spot a faker a mile away” and, therefore, required that teachers supply classwork to any “ill” child being escorted to the Nurse’s Office! Students quickly learned that she was “no nonsense,” and her two mantras were: “I tell it like it is” and “You’re gonna miss me when I’m gone.” She did and we do.

Throughout the years the Johnson home became Party Central! MaryJane and Sonny were excellent hosts, and every gathering enjoyed MaryJane’s enthusiastic song and dance routines and Sonny’s Irish tenor. They, and many of their friends, entertained the whole community by participating in Sacred Heart Church’s annual minstrel show.

MaryJane’s zest for life was contagious. She insisted that her children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren all become excellent swimmers and mini-entertainers on their own. All were taught to sing along with “Grammie/Nanny/GG” as she belted out her theme song “Toot Toot Tootsie.” All the grandkids became proficient at Gram’s “Alley Cat” dance routine and were on the dance floor at every wedding, anniversary, or “you-name-it” occasion following her lead. This woman witnessed so much history (The Depression, World Wars, automobiles in every driveway, paved roads, television, color motion pictures, deaths of US Presidents, power blackouts, computers, cellphones, laptops, etc.). Her favorite mode of communication was via FaceTime, enabling her to see each person and assess their health and well-being. Once a nurse, always a nurse!!

After their retirements in the early ‘80s, Sonny and MaryJane enjoyed years of travel here and abroad. On each trip, they added a friend or two to their list! After the death of her beloved Sonny in 2001, MaryJane moved to The Villages, FL, where her home became the gathering place for new friends and neighbors. She lived there alone for 21 years and enjoyed every social event offered! During COVID, she relocated to Minnesota and moved in with her daughter Kathleen and son-in-law Steve Lundeen until they could no longer provide the social life she so richly desired. Her final residence was at Amira Choice in Bloomington, where new friendships were nurtured, where she became a legend as their “eldest resident,” and where everyone was informed that she had all her own teeth and kept her natural hair color at her age of 102! Until her passing, she participated in weekly trivia contests, pinochle, bridge and 500 card games, and every party/singalong scheduled!

She was preceded in death by her husband, daughter Deborah, and sons-in-law Mitchell Weeks, Frank Null, and Stephen Ross. Survivors include daughters Maureen Ross, PJ Johnson-Null, Kathleen (Stephen) Lundeen, son Julius “JJ,” (Diane) Johnson, 11 grandchildren, 23 great-grandchildren, 7 great-great-grandchildren, and many loved nieces, nephews, and godchildren…along with friends and neighbors spanning her time here on earth. Because of her personal experience with the childhood illness and loss of her daughter Deborah, MaryJane was a decades-long donor to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. The family has requested donations in MaryJane’s memory to St Jude’s: http://fundraising.stjude.org/goto/MaryJaneJohnson

A Celebration of Life will be held in September for Mary Jane at Sacred Heart Church in Georgetown, CT with burial following at St. Mary Cemetery, Ridgefield, CT.