Johnnie Dee Stewart

Johnnie Dee Stewart has gone home to her Creator. She passed to her eternal home on Saturday, May 6, 2017 at her place in Montgomery, TX. Johnnie was born September 12, 1930 to Harry and Dixie Johnson in the tiny town of Roosevelt in western Oklahoma. She lived a pleasant life of a young schoolgirl until struck by a mysterious illness at age 11. The small-town doctor was perplexed by her symptoms and had no diagnosis. She was weak and eventually lost use of one of her legs. Her parents withdrew her from school and she continued to decline. Then one day the doorbell rang, and on the porch was the proverbial traveling magazine salesman. Her mother Dixie answered the door, and Johnnie, who had crawled to the door to observe, was on the floor beside her. Eventually the young man paused in his sales pitch and inquired what was wrong with her daughter. She said she had taken Johnnie to the doctor in town and no one had a clue as to what was wrong with her. The young salesman said, “Your daughter has a goiter – a goiter of the thyroid,” and he wrote down the name of a doctor, a specialist, in Oklahoma City. He told Johnnie’s mom that he was a medical student selling magazines to pay for medical school, and that she needed to take the girl to the doctor immediately. At the hospital in Oklahoma City, the doctor removed a large, life-threatening goiter that had wrapped itself around her vocal chords and esophagus, literally strangling her. After the surgery, she convalesced and made a full recovery, finally returning to school. Johnnie’s mother attempted to locate that young magazine salesman to thank him for saving her daughter’s life. She had neither his name, nor the name of his employer. On checking with neighbors, she found that no one else in town had a salesman try to sell them magazines around that time. The Johnson’s home seemed to have been his only stop. This apparent miracle cleared the path for Johnnie’s blessed, long life, and helped instill in her a firm belief in God. Johnnie, the oldest in her family, had two siblings, Betty, who was still her lifelong, best friend even at the time of her passing, and brother Jerry, who preceded her in death in 2005. The family moved from Roosevelt to Dalhart, TX, where in high school she met her future husband, Billy Stewart. Billy joined the Air Force and was sent to Lackland AFB in San Antonio. They were married on November 17, 1951, a union that lasted for fifty-three years. Their adventure together truly began when she left the Panhandle to join him there. Their first child, Rex, was born in 1954, and their second, Debbie, in 1958 in Austin. With Billy out of the military, they returned to the Panhandle, first to Amarillo, and then to run a small motel in Tulia. The young family then moved far away to Wisconsin and then Minnesota, with Billy both in feed sales and as the company pilot. That travel/flying bug infected the couple and together they went everywhere and often: to Las Vegas, the Bahamas and the Mexican coast to name a few. Eventually they returned to Texas and settled in the Houston area and raised their two children. Johnnie discovered she loved bowling, and with her sister Betty joined a league. When Johnnie broke her right arm, she learned to bowl left-handed to not miss out. With the kids grown and gone and Billy retired, they moved from their place in The Woodlands further out to a home on Lake Livingston. And it was here that Johnnie was able to concentrate on her ultimate pursuit, fishing. She literally fished every day at the pier at Cape Royale, or out on the lake. Their freezer was usually filled to overflowing with her specialty, crappie. To keep busy, the tiny, soft-spoken and petite Johnnie (she wore a size-5 shoe) took on the job as security guard (often at night) at the entrance kiosk for the Cape Royale community. But she always found time to fish – and also to maintain her faith. She and Billy enjoyed their retirement years with their dog Tuffy; Johnnie was – as she had always been – a devoted wife to her husband. Billy passed away in 2004 and Johnnie moved into her own place on the property of her sister Betty and her husband Myron in rural Montgomery County. The two sisters played games – cards and Yahtzee their favorites, shopped, and for several years volunteered their free beautician skills – Johnnie was a licensed beautician – to the residents at a senior home in Conroe. With Billy gone, Johnnie clung to her little terrier, Tuffy. Even in her final moments she remembered “my little boy dog.” Johnnie prayed often and with purpose. As Betty has said, “Well, she prayed me in.” And for more than a decade the two sisters and Myron attended The Living Branch Church in Montgomery, where they were prayer warriors to intercede for many needs. Johnnie and Betty, who never missed a chance to brag on their kids and grandkids, were near-constant companions to the very end. Last December Johnnie suffered a stroke that affected her speech, but fortunately little else. At the start of this year she moved in with her son, Rex and his wife Kathy in Austin. Kathy, a minister, was impressed by Johnnie continuing to share a daily devotional together, despite her difficulties with speech. But Johnnie’s greatest hope was to return home, and three months ago she returned home to Montgomery to Betty and Myron’s place. Congestive Heart Failure was the principal cause for her death. She died at her home in her room surrounded by family as she wanted, peacefully and acceptingly making that final journey to be with her Savior. Those left behind and who will miss her dearly are her son, Rex Stewart and his wife Kathy, and her daughter, Debbie Andersen and husband Kevon. Her three granddaughters, Sharie Hollemans and husband Kevin, Kara Kent and husband Brandon, and Kayci Ramos and husband Iric. Her five great-grandchildren, Keegan, Paxton, Camren , Garrett and Angelina. She is survived by her sister Betty Gabbert and husband Myron, and preceded in death by her younger brother Jerry Johnson. A memorial service will be held at the Sam Houston Memorial Funeral Home, 20850 Eva St., Montgomery, TX 77356, on Saturday, May 13, 2017 at 10 a.m., conducted by the Rev. Kjell Johansson, pastor of her church, Living Branch. In lieu of flowers, family suggests donations be made to Royal Family Kids, a summer camp for abused and neglected children, where each of Johnnie's granddaughters have served. Follow this link: http://austin.royalfamilykids.org To leave condolences to the family, please go to www.shmfh.com

Johnnie Dee Stewart

September 12, 1930 - May 6, 2017