William Franklin Johnson, junior

Although Mr. Johnson spent the majority of his lifetime in Charlotte, North Carolina, he was a native of the historic township of Farmington, North Carolina. Mr. Johnson's grandmother, the late doyenne, Kate Brock Brown, predeceased him in 1983.

Mr. Johnson was a senior executive with the investment firm of Morgan Stanley, Charlotte, North Carolina. On June 4, 1993, he founded the Johnson and Cooper Investment Advisory Group. Prior to joining Morgan Stanley, Mr. Johnson held senior executive positions with Merrill Lynch, UBS Financial Services, Paine Webber, J. C. Bradford and Company, and Bank of America. He began his corporate career as an accountant and tax consultant for PricewaterhouseCoopers in Charlotte, North Carolina. Although the majority of Mr. Johnson's career was in corporate America, he began his professional life as an intensive care unit registered nurse at Wake Forest University North Carolina Baptist Hospital.

Mr. Johnson earned his Doctor of Law from Wake Forest University School of Law. He earned a Masters in Taxation and Estate Planning from the A.B.A. program at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois. Mr. Johnson earned his Bachelor of Science (magna cum laude) in Accounting from the Bryan School of Business and Economics at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.

Mr. Johnson served on the board of Opera Carolina in Charlotte, North Carolina, a position he held since 2002. He was a member of the North Carolina State Bar, North Carolina State Bar Association, Mecklenburg County Bar, Beta Gamma Sigma (International Honorary Society of Economics and Business). He was a past board member of Hospice at Charlotte. Mr. Johnson was a member of Christ Episcopal Church in Charlotte, North Carolina. He was a patron to the arts community of Charlotte, North Carolina. Mr. Johnson was a quiet supporter of the Mint Museum of Art, Charlotte Symphony, Opera Carolina, Charlotte Raptor Center, Wake Forest University School of Law, Beta Gamma Sigma, Historic Farmington Methodist Church and Christ Episcopal Church. Mr. Johnson loved music, and he began several music funds in memory of his beloved grandmother.

The service to honor his life will be held at 11 am on Tuesday, January 5, 2016 at Christ Church, 1412 Providence Road, Charlotte. His close friends will receive visitors following the service. Interment at the family plot at Farmington Community Cemetery will be private.

Memorial contributions may be made to Christ Episcopal Church, Kate Brock Brown Music Fund, 1412 Providence Road, Charlotte, NC 28207, or to Farmington Community Cemetery Fund, 155 Pineville Road, Mocksville, NC 27028.