July 21, 1925 - Dec. 9, 2012
William Maxson Johnson III of Bend passed away December 9, 2012 at the age of 87. William was born July 21, 1925 in Camden, New Jersey to William M. Johnson Jr. and Frances (Black) Johnson. He was raised in the Camden Philadelphia area and attended Ridley Township High School in Folsom, PA.
William served twice in the Army. He was a radio operator with the 89th Reconnaissance Troop during World War II. In 1948, he reenlisted and was honorably discharged in 1952 at the rank of Corporal.
William relocated to Los Angeles after his military service and attended L.A. City College and UC Berkeley before settling into his 30+ year career with the Southern California Gas Company. He helped program first generation computers, eventually working his way up to supervisor of the computer systems research department. He also met his wife, Audrey (Siedler), there and they were married in 1970.
William relocated to Bend with his family in 1983 and retired the following year. William enjoyed gardening, spending every summer tending to his roses and nurturing the nearly 100 trees he planted on his small acreage. William also enjoyed traveling, genealogy, reading the Wall Street Journal, sharing his dry wit, and spending time with his family. He is survived by his daughters, Jennifer (and Craig) Letz of Bend, and Mary (and Tom) Mokry of Long Beach, CA; niece, Patty Siedler of Redmond; and two grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his beloved wife.
A Celebration of Life will be held noon January 5, 2013, at Aspen Hall in Bend.
William M. Johnson III
