Nolan Edward "Spike" Johnson was born in River Falls, Wisconsin on October 8, 1928 the son of Rudolph and Luella (Olson) Johnson. He grew up in River Falls and attended the public schools there. After leaving school he held several jobs including working at the local bowling alley or working in the sugar beet fields. He served in the U.S. Naval Reserves and the United States Army/Air Corps. In the Navy, he served on the Franklin D Roosevelt as a gunners mate. In the Army he worked as an Administrative Specialist at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas. He was discharged in 1947. On January 27, 1951 he was united in marriage to Joyce Ostlund and together they had three sons. He was a man of several jobs. He was a trucker, operated a home delivery milk route, but Spike ended up in a Machine Shop where he retired as supervisor in 1990. Early in his life he was a member of the Masonic Lodge and was an avid Ham Radio Operator. He and Joyce owned a cabin on White Ash Lake near Balsam Lake, Wisconsin since 1959. In 1998 they moved their permanently. Spike enjoyed fishing, but was not one to sit idle. He was a handyman and kept himself busy fixing and building things. After a brief illness he died at his home in rural Balsam Lake on Sunday, May 31, 2015 at the age of 86 years.
Spike was preceded in death by his parents and sister Deloris. Left to mourn are his wife Joyce; sons: Doug (Patricia), Bruce (Denise) and Wes; brothers: Wayne and Gary (Connie); sisters: Barbara Barton and Shirley (Chet) Gunderson; seven grandchildren; 10 great grandchildren as well as other relatives and friends.


Memorial services will be held on Friday, June 5 at 11:00 a.m. at Georgetown Lutheran Church, 877 190th St., Balsam Lake, WI. There will be visitation the hour prior to the service at the church. Military honors will be rendered following the service. Interment will be at a later date at the Northern Wisconsin Veterans Memorial Cemetery near Spooner, WI.