John M. (Mike) Johnson, 68, died peacefully in his own bed, at home in Seattle with his wife beside him on December 28th, 2018, of Alzheimer’s disease.
Mike was a quintessential self-made man. He was born in Wenatchee, Washington, raised in the Seattle area, and attended Franklin High School, Washington State University, and Seattle Colleges. While still a teenager, he became a manager at Dag’s Drive In. From there he went to the Olympic Foundry, where he first became fascinated by the overhead cranes that transported the kettles of red-hot steel to the molds that formed many of our city’s iconic manhole covers. He set about learning the enigmatic secrets of crane operators and became so proficient that he was hired by Ederer, Inc., a Seattle manufacturer of overhead cranes, as an expert trouble shooter for the company’s crane systems worldwide.
At the same time, Mike received his Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering from Western Washington University in Bellingham, where he met his first wife., Colleen Shields Johnson, the mother of his beloved son Clint Johnson. The desire to settle down led Mike to the Boeing Company, where he worked as a Crane Engineer until he became ill in 2015.
Mike was a popular employee with a lively sense of humor, an agile intellect, and an abundance of practical expertise in his field. He received many commendations and awards for the masterful equipment designs he produced to accommodate Boeing’s increasing production of 737 models at the Renton plant.
Mike was an avid golfer, fisherman, boater, and cribbage player. He was also a natural entertainer – singer, guitar player, and story teller, never without a quip to crack you up.
Mike is survived by his wife, Shary Flenniken; son Clint (wife Ashley) Johnson; brothers David (wife Barbara) and Terry Cassell; sisters Janet (husband Ronnie) Sluyter and Ellen (husband Ken) Medley; and grandchildren Kira and Wesley Johnson. Mike’s family extends warm thanks to the Boeing SPEEA union, Full Life Care Ravenna, Evergreen Hospice, People’s Memorial Association, and Queen Anne Manor’s Respite Care. A celebration of Mike’s life for family and friends is planned for this spring.