T.O. (Tinsley Oliver) Johnson was born on June 23, 1919 to Thomas Tinsley and Olive Adams Johnson in Stockton, CA and moved to Milton, CA at the age of 6, then to Oakdale, CA at the age of 15, where he remained the rest of his life. He was drafted in the Army in 1941 until 1945. He spent much of his military career in Italy and France in World War II. He is one of Oakdale’s last surviving World War II veterans.
In 1951, he married Ruth Louise (Michner) Johnson of Valley Home. They had two children, a son, Tinsley Lawrence Johnson and wife Loretta, and a daughter Ruth Anne (Johnson) Alvarado and husband Rene. He has six grandchildren, and four great grandchildren.
T.O. was a self employed Bee Keeper and Cabinet Maker.
His wife Ruth, of 54 years, passed away in 2005. She left T.O. with a huge empty spot in his life. He chose to fill his hours with the rehabilitation of his grandson Jesse, after he was in a major traffic accident. For the last 10 years he was his grandson Jesse’s constant companion. Jesse had taken away his loneliness of losing his wife Ruth, and T.O. now had purpose, and many things to fill the void in his life. They had a partnership that worked wonderfully together. T.O. needed his grandson Jesse, as much as Jesse needed him.
Graveside services will be held Wednesday, December 2, 2015 at 1 p.m. at Milton Masonic Cemetery in Milton, CA.
Forever Loved and Missed.
The Oakdale (Calif.) Leader
Dec. 2, 2015