Eugene Alexander Johnson, Jr., 87, passed away quietly at Peace Hospice on Friday, December 6, 2019. A visitation will be Friday, December 13, 2019, from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. at Schnider Funeral Home. The funeral liturgy will be Saturday, December 14, 2019, at 11:00 a.m. at St. Ann’s Cathedral. Eugene was born November 1, 1932, in Great Falls to Eugene Alexander Johnson and Anne Majewski. He was the oldest of 8 children. Adventurous at a young age, he solved his problem of getting lost on tricycle adventures by carrying a piece of chalk with him and marking the sidewalk as he went with arrows pointing the way home. During WWII he enlisted a bunch of neighbor kids to help in the war effort. A group of towel caped crusaders, their task was to protect the victory gardens in the neighborhood. The group disbanded when a group of older boys thrashed them. He loved to fish and won a local fishing contest as a teenager. He was a senior patrol leader in Boy Scouts of America Troop 4. His love for airplanes led him to join the Montana Air National Guard in high school. His lack of 20/20 vision prevented him from becoming a pilot, so he became an aircraft mechanic. His unit was sent to California to guard the coast for a time during the Korean War. He remained with the MTANG as a full-time employee until his retirement. He participated with the guard in flood related evacuations and clean-ups, and also served as a medic when the State Mental Hospital went on strike. He was greatly moved by this experience and organized a book and music drive for the hospital patients. He was a man of many talents and interests. Among his favorites was music and he taught himself to play many different instruments. For years he played banjo and mandolin with a local group of Vaughn residents called The Sand Hill Five. He married Maxine Whinnery in 1955. The 2 of them raised Maxine’s son Doug and their 5 children in Vaughn. Community minded, Eugene served on the Vaughn water board, School board and Dike committee. He loved the outdoors, fishing, hiking, camping and teaching others outdoor skills with many of the fun family memories being centered on those activities. He took a night job on the flight line at Malmstrom Air Force Base, and worked nights so he could go to college. He received a BS from The College of Great Falls and a MS in Microbiology from MSU in the 1970’s. He worked as a research scientist at The McLaughlin Research Center for a few years before returning to full time work at MTANG. He and Maxine divorced in 1995. He married Mercedes Viveros on June 25, 1996. He and Mercedes and his new stepson Ernesto resided in Vaughn until the time of his death. In his retirement he continued to love the outdoors and volunteer service. He volunteered to teach Spanish in an after school program for a few years and as a hiking guide for the Wilderness Association up until his health gave out. He continued to love fishing with his new family and friends as long as he could. The children of his first family would like to express their thanks to Mercedes, Ernesto, and those who have been so instrumental in caring for him in his old age. He was preceded in death by his parents, Eugene and Ann Johnson; brother, James Johnson; sister, Evelyn Johnson; and great-grandson David. Eugene is survived by his wife, Mercedes Johnson; stepsons, Ernesto and Doug Johnson; children, Janine (Floyd) Catchpole, John (Laurie) Johnson, Debra (John) Briscoe, Susan Whinnery, and Jody Johnson; brothers, Kenneth and Gordon (Mary) Johnson; sisters, Carol Oswalt, Rita Johnson, and Diana Macke; 25 grandchildren; and 31 great-grandchildren.