Cloudy, 57° F
(Feb. 17, 1926 - Dec. 20, 2012)
Lloyd Gordon Johnson, 86, of Cody, died peacefully Thursday, Dec. 20, 2012 at West Park Hospital Long Term Care Center.
He was born to Edwin and Afton Huffman Johnson on Feb. 17, 1926 in Georgetown, Idaho. He was the middle child in a family of seven children.
The Johnson family lived on a ranch by the nearby Bear River. They were a happy family and loved the ranch life and the great outdoors. Lloyd was especially fond of horses. As a teenager, Lloyd and his cousin Arthur used to pack up some provisions and they would head to the local mountains on horseback for days at a time.
When Lloyd was 19, he enlisted in the US Army. After completing his basic training in Fort Lewis, WA, he was sent to Japan. He served with the US Army of Occupation there until World War II ended in 1945.
After returning to Idaho, Lloyd signed up at a flight school and obtained his private pilot’s license. He considered a career in aviation for a time but decided to take up a career in agriculture instead. He worked at a ranch for most of his life. For a short time he owned a trucking company with his brother Dean and they did long-distance hauling in the U.S. and Canada.
In 1957 Lloyd married Catherine Chaser from Poplar, Mont. They had three sons born to them: Gordon, Robert and Jimmy. In 1976 Catherine passed away in a car accident, leaving Lloyd with three teenage sons. Nearly three years later, Lloyd married Vietta Clifford and gained two-step children: Tara and Mark.
Lloyd and Vietta lived on several ranches in the Cody area. In 1982 they moved up to Vietta’s home province of Alberta, Canada. They lived there for 10 years. After retirement from ranching, Lloyd and Vietta moved back to Cody where Lloyd took up a job as a floor guard at the Buffalo Bill Historical Center. He worked there until he was 83.
Lloyd leaved to mourn his loving wife Vietta; three sons: Robert (Naomi) Johnson from McLaughlin, SD, Gordon Johnson from Idaho Falls, Idaho, Jimmy Johnson from Cody; stepdaughter Tara (Mike) Styers from Big Lake, AK, stepson Mark (Shannon) Allan from Castaic, CA; three grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren. He also has one surviving sister, Helen Fordin, of Elko, Nev. Lloyd was preceded in death by his first wife Catherine, his parents, and five brothers and sisters.
Funeral services will be held at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints Stake Center on 1407 Heart Mountain Street in Cody on December 27, 2012 at 10am with Bishop Jeff Rudolph presiding. Viewing will be held the hour prior in the Relief Society Room. Burial will follow at Riverside Cemetery with military honors provided by the VFW Honor Guard.
An online memorial is available at www.ballardfh.com
