Birth date: Mar 3, 1941 Death date: Sep 1, 2023
Bill (Wilmer) A. Johnston Jr. (82) of Tampa, FL took his final journey on September 1, 2023 to be with his God and Savior, Jesus Christ and join those family and friends that have gone before him. Bill lived his life in Tampa prac Read Obituary
Bill was my best friend from the third grade and through high school. I will always count myself very fortunate that he befriended me. He was so genuine. And so genuinely fine. And he had the finest sense of humor of anyone I ever knew. His was probably the most successful life of which I know. Marriage, family, friends, profession, well-earned respect, and yet never vanity. Genuine. We who knew him were just lucky.
Tyler’s Tribute:
I was thinking what is one word for my dad... and I came up with never.
For my entire life I have never:
seen my dad angry.
heard him raise his voice or yell, not once.
heard him say a foul word, sure he has but never in front of me.
heard him talk disparagingly about someone, disagree yes, not like yes, but he never put anyone down maliciously.
Seen his faith waiver, not for a second.
Seen him question God, there was never any doubt.
he was never out of control.
and he never boasted about anything.
All these I have not, and will never master, I'm sure dad would say he did not either. In 20+ years of ministry I met many "might men of God" not one of them as kind, genuine and steadfast as my dad.
I've thought long and hard on dad's nature, and my conclusion, above all things he loved the Word of God, he studied it, knew it, and practiced it daily in everything he did.
Bill Johnston went to be with the Lord today and I can honestly say with no doubt he got a standing ovation and deserved "Well done my good and faithful servant".
“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God."
Matthew 5:9
Tyler Johnston
Email tributes to Bill Johnston http://www.sunsetmemory.com/
We are deeply sorry to hear about the loss of cousin Bill. Thank you for reaching out to let us know.
We pray that God will give you comfort and peace during this time of grief.
Love, Anita, Robert and Daniel (Frank Arcuri’s family)
IN FOND MEMORY OF BILL JOHNSTON From England
Marie:
Dear Pat,
We are deeply saddened to hear the news of Bill’s passing. Of course, we understood from the day of his diagnosis that this day would come but that never lessens the pain when it does and we share it with you.
There is no doubt that he will leave a huge void within your family and in your Community but know that his spirit will remain forever in the hearts of everyone he touched. Please pass our love and innermost sympathy on to all.
I am sure you will hear many times in the coming weeks and months what a good and kind man Bill was from everyone who ever passed his way. During the course of our many, long conversations I always found him to be truly one of life’s natural philosophers.
But to those of us who had the chance to get to know him well what will remain above all else is the memory of how much pleasure there was in just being in his company and it is that which will stay with me the longest.
Michael:
Dear Pat
I would like to send my condolences to you, Heather, Tyler and their families on hearing the sad news of Bill’s passing and to add my own thoughts on why he was such an important person to me, as a visiting ‘Limey’, in all my memories of my time in the USA going back from our first arrival in Florida in 1969 to our last visit in 2016.
Finding myself in CRW’s boisterous ’69 office with nightly cocktails on the stroke of 5, office duck shoots, annual pig races for the ‘garden staff’ and whatever else came up was a bit of a culture shock. To find someone in the organization who had a bit of an outside observer’s view of the whole circus (that was you, Pat!) was a real relief.
To find soon after that you were also married to such a courteous and approachable person was the clincher. Bill was a man who always appeared to be more interested in engaging and listening to other people than promoting himself. You may not remember but at the end of one of our sojourns he briefly employed me in his office where I got to see how well he controlled both his clients and indeed his staff by always staying calm when all around him were flapping!
For me and Marie getting together with you two in that first year made all the difference and on all of our subsequent visits to Florida including our last numerous stays in your home they were the high points of each of our trips. These are memories I will always treasure. We share in your sadness as we remember Bill. Our thoughts and sympathies are with you. Michael & Marie
