Marjie M. "Chi Chi" Johnson

6/29/1938 — 1/12/2021

Service Date: 1/22/2021
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Marjie Molloy “Chi Chi” Johnson passed away Tuesday, Jan. 12, 2020, at Royal Plaza Health and Rehabilitation Center at Lewiston.

She was born to Howard and Vivian Molloy Bradbury on June 29, 1938, at Orofino. She attended the Headquarters Grade School, Holy Names Academy (Spokane), Pierce High School and the University of Idaho, where she was a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority and graduated with a degree in sociology. She then pursued graduate studies in social work at Loyola University at Chicago.

Following her studies, she worked for the Fire Underwriters Laboratory at San Francisco and taught at the Orofino High School for a year, after which she married David Johnson, to whom were born Geoffrey Howard and Dwight Samuel Johnson. The marriage later ended in divorce.

Marjie started her career in Lewiston teaching at the Lewiston High School, until she was elected to the Lewiston School Board. She then spent the rest of her work life with the Department of Health and Welfare protecting vulnerable children and adults. She never let the bureaucratic red tape get in the way of doing her job and was always a friend to those who needed one most.

Marjie’s spunk culminated in a set-to with a magistrate judge about whether a young boy would go to the Juvenile Corrections Facility or remain under her jurisdiction. In a spectator-filled courtroom that included the two district judges, Marjie refused to surrender her jurisdiction and introduced the judge to an immoveable force. During this time as the chair of the Lewiston Girls’ Club and the mother of two boys, she was instrumental in the merger of the Girls’ Club with the Boys’ Club.

Marjie was also an avid reader and a member of two book clubs. Her passion for reading led to her membership on the Lewiston City Library Board that sparked the approval and construction of the new library and her delivery of library books to the homebound until physical infirmities intervened.

When Marjie wasn’t reading books, she was often playing bridge; she played over a 50-year period with lifelong friends. Whether you played duplicate or party bridge with her, you soon came to appreciate her card smarts and competitive spirit. It can truly be said of her, “She did it her way.”

Marjie is survived by her sons, Geoff and Sam; her grandchildren, Jack and Jody Johnson; her brother, John Bradbury; her cousin, Mark Edelblute; and several other cousins.

There will be a pub-lic viewing at Vassar Rawls Funeral Home from 4-7 p.m. Jan. 22, and a private graveside service will be held the next day. A public celebration of her life will be held at a later date.

Memorials to the Lewiston City Library Foundation or the J. Howard Bradbury Memorial Logging Museum at Pierce are suggested.

Service Information

Date & Time: Friday, January 22, 4:00 PM
Location: Vassar-Rawls Funeral Home
920-21st Avenue
Lewiston, Idaho 83501

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Additional Details: Viewing will be Friday, January 22, 2021 from 4-7:00 p.m.