Ronald B. Johnson

Ronald B. Johnson passed peacefully from this life at Cambridge Place on July 18, 2025. He was born to Green and Stella Johnson in Sand Gap KY on August 2, 1939. In childhood the forests, mountains and rocky streams of the Appalachians were his playground.

In 1960 he joined the Army and was stationed at Fort. Riley. One summer night on leave he and several buddies heard of a carnival in Marysville. That night a local girl caught his eye. Several years and many obstacles later she would become his wife.

In 1961 Ron was airlifted with the Big Red One to Germany during the Berlin Crisis. He loved Germany and its people so wrote glowing letters of his experiences to his new lady friend in Kansas. When he returned from Germany they started dating and the rest is history. Laurel's family didn't think she should marry a wild mountain man, and his family wondered why he had to go to Kansas to find a wife. Ron and Laurel Smith were married in 1965 so somehow it worked out for almost 60 years.

Ron was a carpet layer who took great pride in his work. He loved flea markets, bass fishing, gun trading, and visiting with friends. He was just your everyday guy who enjoyed joking and watching tv. And that wild Kentucky mountain man came to love the Kansas plains as much as he loved his mountains. He is survived by his wife Laurel and one nephew, and both will miss him like crazy.

He will be cremated with no service.