On December 14, 2022, Dora Marina Gonzalez Johnson, MD, passed away in Seattle, WA at 76 years of age. She was preceded in death by her parents, Nicolas and Marina (Marmolejo) Gonzalez. Marina is survived by her daughter Afton Johnson Stickney (Ryan) of Shoreline, WA, and siblings Dolores Garcia (Jim) (Deceased) of Lubbock, TX, Carlos Gonzalez (Janet) of Plainfield, NJ, Miguel (Mike) Gonzalez (JoAnn) of Granbury, TX, and Sylvia Andersh of Tucson, AZ as well as several cousins, nieces, and nephews.
Marina was born on October 22, 1946, in Comales, Tamaulipas, Mexico. She graduated from Little Cypress High School, Orange, TX, in 1965 (valedictorian) and went on to graduate from the University of Houston in 1970 with a BS in Pharmacy (with highest honors). She later went on to graduate from the University of California Los Angeles School of Medicine with an MD in 1978.
Marina married Dallas Johnson in 1972 in the chapel of the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, MD. They welcomed their daughter Afton Marina in 1976. Marina worked as a hospital pharmacist at St. Elizabeth Hospital in Beaumont, TX and later as a retail pharmacist in North
Carolina and Florida prior to attending medical school. She was an Assistant Editor of the National Formulary Service of the American Society of Hospital Pharmacists in Bethesda, MD, from 1971 to 1973. Following graduation from UCLA, Dr. Johnson completed a residency in Internal Medicine at UCLA’s St. Mary’s Hospital/Harbor General Hospital in Long Beach, CA, followed by a fellowship in Endocrinology with the University of Southern California at the Los Angeles County General Hospital.
She began her professional medical career as an endocrinologist and researcher in 1984 at City of Hope National Medical Center in Duarte (Los Angeles), CA, later moving to Medical City Dallas Hospital in Dallas, TX. She entered the private practice of Endocrinology in 1986 where she practiced for the next 35 years in the Dallas/Ft. Worth, TX area. She was a published author, a successful, respected, and valued endocrinologist, and a life long learner.
The accomplishments she was most proud of were her time as an editor of the of the National Drug Formulary of ASHP and the publication of her book Outliving Your Ovaries, the latter being on the topic of menopause written for a lay audience, from an endocrinologist’s perspective.
Outside of medicine, Marina enjoyed Scottish country dancing, interior decorating, and cooking for family and friends as well as bargain hunting. When deciding on a purchase, she would often reference the rule of three “B”s she learned from her mother. Only if the item was Bueno, Bonito, and Barato, would it come home with her.
A memorial service for Dr. Johnson is planned for June 16, 2023, at the People’s Co-op Funeral Home at the Queen Anne Baptist Church, Seattle, WA. Condolences may be sent to her daughter. In lieu of flowers a donation in her name may be made to the American Heart Association’s “Go Red for Women Campaign” as she was a great advocate for women’s health.