Marilyn Johnson

Marilyn Johnson, a beloved wife, mother, grandmother, sister, and friend passed away peacefully in her home in Amarillo, TX, on March 26, 2026, at the age of 84. She was born on November 4, 1941, in Amarillo, TX to James “J.L.” and Lorene Wood McCarty.

Marilyn graduated from Amarillo High School in 1959 and received a Bachelor of Science degree from West Texas State University in 1964. She married Don Johnson on July 1, 1960, and together they created a home filled with love and laughter, raising a son, Kent Johnson and a daughter, Paige Johnson Denison.

While attending West Texas State University, Marilyn worked at the Amarillo Helium Plant. As a woman mathematician, she brought an early understanding of computers to the plant and worked as a programmer analyst. Marilyn was nominated as Miss Helium in 1968 and her role as Miss Helium is captured in the helium monument time capsule outside the Amarillo Discovery Center. She continued her career as a programmer analyst at Mesa Petroleum and Pioneer Natural Resources and shared her talents as a teacher at West Texas State University and Tascosa High School.

Marilyn loved her family deeply and created endless memories and traditions with them. She shared her faith and love for God with everyone she encountered. She was a member of Canyon Hills Church of Christ and attended Polk Street Methodist Church as a child. Marilyn volunteered with Meals on Wheels for nearly 40 years, was a master gardener and loved playing in the dirt and was a talented artist. She loved horses, enjoyed going to horse shows and team pennings and was a 4-H leader of the T-Anchor horse program. She was always present at her grandkids’ sports or school events and loved cooking on the chuckwagon and competing in cook-off events.

She is preceded in death by her parents, James “J.L.” and Lorene Wood McCarty; brother, James McCarty; son, Kent Johnson; and mother-in-law, Maxine Terry Pickett and her husband Calvin.

Marilyn is survived by her husband, Don Johnson; daughter, Paige Johnson Denison and husband Rickie; granddaughter, Shlay Denison Koetting and husband Sam; daughter-in-law, Susan Johnson; and grandsons, Sean Johnson, and James Johnson and wife Melissa; and great grandchildren Aspen Koetting, Callan Koetting and Savannah “Peaches” Johnson; her brother Kevin McCarty and wife Lynda; sister-in-law Eula Sharp and husband Jack; and many nieces and nephews and great nieces and nephews.

Visitation will be on Sunday, March 29, 2026, from 4-5:30 PM, at Boxwell Brothers Funeral Home, 2800 Paramount. Funeral service will be Monday, March 30, 2026, at 10:00 AM at Canyon Hills Church of Christ, 3109 N. 23rd, Canyon, TX. The family will meet for the internment at 9:00AM at Dreamland Cemetery. Arrangements are made by Boxwell Brothers Funeral Directors.