Paul Richard Johnson went to be with the Lord on January 12, 2011. He was born on May 6th of 1954 to Richard and Doris Johnson. He was the middle child of one girl and two boys. He is survived by his wife Colleen Ann Johnson, one Daughter Richann Carrie Johnson, his parents Rich and Doris, one sister Nancee Maree Peters and one brother Mark Leonard Johnson.
Paul's early life was spent in west Denver. He started kindergarten at Fairmont elementary school where his father and sister had also gone. In 1959 the family moved to southwest Denver where Paul attended Johnson elementary. Then transferred to Sabin after moving further south in Denver. He then went to high school at J.F. Kennedy from the 7th through 12th grades.
Paul was a Cub Scout and in the ROTC while in high school. He was always interested in the military, but because of his health it was not an option for him. He also spent many hours building model planes, ships or what ever caught his fancy at the time.
Paul was active in the West Side Christian Church where he was baptized as a young man. He served the congregation as a Deacon and did many jobs around the building.
Paul met Colleen in the spring of 1969. He was dating one of her best friends at the time. Cindy & Colleen were walking home from school and this kid on a bike came up behind them and almost ran them over. Colleen thought he was a real jerk. Cindy introduced them and that was just the beginning. Colleen started to attend church with Cindy and Paul and went to Camp Como that summer with them. Through the week Colleen didn’t care for the way that Cindy was treating Paul and started to spend a little more time with him. By the end of that summer Paul and Cindy had broken up and Colleen didn’t think he was such a jerk anymore. They dated all through high school and were married on June 7th of 1974. In January of 1979 Paul & Colleen were blessed with a precious little girl named Richann.
Paul was a great father and spent a lot of time with Richann. At one time Paul was working nights and was able to spend all day with Richann while Colleen was at work. Paul & Richann had a very special relationship. He would take her and her friends up camping or to Glenwood. There are not many men that would give up a weekend to spend it in a tent with a couple of preteen girls. In September of 2003 Paul & Richann traveled east visiting places from the nation’s history and Washington DC. Paul had passed on his love of history to Richann. They talked about walking the streets of DC looking for someplace to get some lunch as Tropical Storm Isabel had shut down the entire city. They never imagined they would encounter tropical weather in the nation’s capitol. But as they did with many things, they just laughed through it all. They loved spending time together no matter what they were doing.
Paul loved spending time with the family. They took many trips together. At first it was camping in a tent and fishing then they began flying to places further away. They went to Disney World in Florida many times. Last January Paul was finally able to go on a cruise with Colleen & Richann and had a great time. Then in September they were able to go to Hawaii which was one of the places that Paul had always wanted to go to.
Paul loved his great niece Liberty with all his heart. In the summer of 2008 they took Libby up to Glenwood Springs, one of Paul’s favorite places, for a few days. After that trip you could ask Libby who loved her most and the answer was always Uncle Paul.
In addition to his family Paul loved to work on cars. He always wanted to do his own car repairs and usually did. Recently he purchased an old Dodge Scamp and was in the process of restoring it.
Paul’s work history involved everything from sweeping floors for the schools and running a machine that stuffed envelopes to selling diamonds at a jewelry store. Even though he was a very quiet man he was great with customers. Most recently he was working a Lowe’s Home Improvements in the Tools and Hardware departments. When he got the job Colleen told him that he had to bring home a paycheck not just new tools, HE LOVED HIS TOOLS!
Arrangements under the direction of Olinger Chapel Hill Mortuary & Cemetery, Littleton, CO.
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