Addison Merlin Johnson died peacefully in the home he built on Camano Island on July 22, 2024 just shy of his 87th birthday. It was where he wanted to be, with his loving family by his side, and his eyes on the coming and going of the tides, oh, and his dear cat Revie.
He was born to Joe and Bea Johnson and his sister Alison, in Bellingham. The family lived in Port Graham, Alaska for most of his early life with recollections of exciting times there, and the voyage back home to Washington in the big, military accompanied ship when WWII broke out.
He was raised mostly on the family farm near Lynden, where he developed his love of flying as he watched planes practicing overhead. Because his father was working in Alaska half-years over his whole youth, Addy learned a lot about working on the farm alongside his mother and the fixing of things from his dear Blackburn uncles.
Later he was joined by his younger brother Alerd, who was his sidekick in many of his early farm life creations, interests and antics.
He graduated from Lynden High School in 1955, played a year of basketball for SVCC, UW 1960, MA from MSU 1966.
He and his wife Tami (Kenoyer) were happily married for 64 years. They took their first teaching jobs in Randle, White Pass High School where they began their family, designed and built their first home, and worked together, while enjoying their family, a daughter, Danette and a son, J Addison into all of their adventures and their long lasting relationship.
During this time Addy was a father, a teacher of math and science, a coach, a play director, guidance counselor, an Air National Guardsman for six years, where he kept a lot of WWII equipment running and always ready to go. He loved inventing new things and ways, making things work more smoothly, from education to building homes for people as well as furniture for his own home.
He served as guidance counselor in two high schools in Tacoma before being appointed to a committee to create a new Foss High School. He made a midlife career change when he was drawn to the Juniper Beach Community on Camano Island, deciding he needed to express a different aspect of himself.
He formed Nordic Construction, which created over a 100 homes, and commercial buildings and served a term as SICBA president in 1984.
Another shift allowed him to create items, secure patents and trademarks for products to protect homes under the banner of Floodsaver and Slide-N-Fold, shipping orders across the North American Continent and beyond.
Throughout his well-lived life Addy was a creative person of many interests, who loved science, technology, music, nature and wildlife.
He was fascinated by all things mechanical, tractors, motorcycles, boats and planes, he owned a couple of Cessna airplanes, made trips over much of the North American Continent, along the way to building and flying his own Glastar.
He was a lifelong maker and appreciator of dear friends he met all along the way.
Addy began writing poetry when many in his circle were leaving. The last lines of one of his poems was “his last challenge was accepted, was mastered with incredible creativity, common sense, courage.” These qualities served Addy well during his own last period of leaving, as did his natural athleticism.
His loving family worked to normalize his care and support, and to honor his courage, his tenacity for independence, and with awe took note that he owned his agency to the very end. His soul still needed to fly… “One bright morning when his life was over, he flew away.” Family and friends gathered on Aug. 9 to celebrate his life on what would have been his 87th birthday.
Addison is survived by his loving family, wife Tami, Danette, J and Deb and extended family; his brother Alerd and Pat; sister-in-law Marcia Kenoyer; five wonderful nieces and four fantastic nephews and all their amazing extended families, the grands and greats, scattered across the land. He was a treasure who will be loved forever.
