Freddie H. Johnson

RANGER – Freddie H. Johnson, 86, of Ranger, went to be with his Lord and Savior peacefully on Sunday, February 15, 2015. Services were held at 2 p.m. Thursday, February 19, 2015 at the First Baptist Church in Ranger. Burial followed in the Merriman Cemetery. The family received friends at Edwards Funeral Home in Ranger Wednesday. Freddie was born January 29, 1929 in Utica, OK to Fred. C. Johnson and Nannie T. Vaughn Johnson. He served in the Army during the Korean War. He married Jean Finfrock in 1954. He was a member of the First Baptist Church and drove a school bus for the Ranger Schools for many years. He lived to work with livestock. He broke and shod horses for over 50 years beginning when he was 8 years old. After moving to Texas he worked for the State Highway Department. He married Bettye Fern Kendrick on December 15, 1972 in Mingus and they settled in Ranger where he began welding. He worked at the Livestock Auction Barn in Ranger until it closed, and then at Texas Cattle Exchange in Olden from its opening in September, 1999. He loved roping, was a member of the Grant Town Riding Club, the Eastland County Sherriff’s Posse, and Quarter Horse Association. For 9 years he judged at the Ranger Jr. Rodeo and other locations. He enjoyed square dancing and was a member of the Eastland County Spinners. He was preceded in death by his parents; and 2 brothers, Milburn Johnson and Otis Caldwell. Survivors include his wife Fern Johnson of Ranger; a sister, Jaunita Kesterson of Grants Pass, Oregon; children, Freddie Johnson Jr, Anita Kay Johnson, Curtis Lee Johnson, and Mikel Allen Kendrick; 7 grandchildren; 15 great-grandchildren; and several nieces, nephews, and cousins.