Luverne Lillian Johnson was born January 13, 1932, the first of three daughters, to her parents Robert and Lydia (Ninneman) Liebe of rural Appleton, MN. She was raised in the Appleton area and graduated from Appleton High School. After high school, Luverne worked at Farmers and Merchants State Bank of Appleton. She then moved to Portland, OR, where she also worked at a bank and found her love of skiing. A few years later she moved back to Appleton and again worked at F&M Bank until she married Junior Johnson of rural Correll, on March 19, 1960. Together they had four children and over 42 years of marriage. In her later years, she worked as a dietary aide at the Appleton Municipal Hospital & Nursing Home for twelve years. In addition to being a loving mother, Luverne was active in her church and very charitable to many Christian service organizations. Luverne enjoyed cooking, gardening, sewing, and hosting gatherings with family and friends. The one thing that was most important to her was her faith in Jesus Christ. She resided on the family farm until the death of her husband in 2002 and then relocated to Alexandria. There, she continued to serve and volunteer in her church until her health would no longer permit her to do so. In 2013, Luverne broke her hip and entered the physical rehabilitation unit at Bethany Community in Alexandria and resided there until her death. Luverne died Sunday, October 25, 2015 in Ecumen Bethany Community in Alexandria. She attained 83 years, 9 months, and 12 days of age. Luverne is survived by her children: Kim (Ron) Lebs of Mission Viejo, CA, Keith Johnson of Correll, John (Marie) Johnson of rural Alexandria, Julie Johnson of Sarasota, FL; 8 grandchildren: Jessica, Matthew, Aaron and Emily Lebs, Larissa, Isaac, Zachariah and Janae Johnson; sister, Elvera Ovre of Redwood Falls; sisters-in-law: Joan Bremseth of Madison and Yvonne (James) Lund of Odessa; brother-in-law, Art Shelstad of Odessa; special nephew, Craig Johnson; several nieces, nephews, other relatives and friends. Luverne was preceded in death by her husband, Junior Johnson; parents, Robert and Lydia Liebe;sister, Doris Liebe; aunts and uncles; and many dear brothers-in-law and sisters-in-law. Blessed be the memory of Luverne Lillian Johnson.
