Dr. Arnold Warren Johnson, Jr.

Dr. Arnold Warren Johnson, Jr, 83, of Cromwell, beloved husband of Margaret Pearson Johnson, went home to be with the Lord on April 21, 2005. Born in Duluth, MN he was the son of the late Arnold and Ethel Wallen Johnson. He was a busy young man, selling magazines and papers and delivering Western Union telegrams by bicycle on the hills of Duluth. After attending North Park College in Chicago and graduating in 1942, Arnold enlisted in the US Army and made the military and medicine his career. He graduated from Baylor University College of Medicine in Houston, TX in 1949. After his medical internship at Minneapolis General Hospital, he received orders to serve as a battalion surgeon in the Korean War, where he served on the front lines. He completed psychiatric residency at Walter Reed Army Hospital in Washington, DC, and neurological residency at Fitzimmons Army Hospital in Denver. He was a Life Fellow in the American Psychiatric Association. During his 35 years of service in the Army, Arnold received the Legion of Merit, the Bronze Star, and the Army Commendation Medal. In his career, Arnold was the Chief of Psychiatry and Neurology at several US Army medical centers, including Fort Hood, TX, Denver, CO, Fort Knox, KY, San Francisco, CA, Landstuhl, Germany, and Walter Reed in Washington DC. He also was the Consultant for Psychiatry and Neurology for the US Army Vietnam in 1966-67, and the Consultant for Psychiatry to the Surgeon General at the Pentagon. Arnold wrote and lectured on the subject of combat psychiatry and served as adjunct faculty at several universities. Arnold retired from the Army as a Colonel in 1977 and became Connecticut's Deputy Commissioner for Mental Health, serving in the state's mental health system for ten years. Arnold lived in Simsbury for 23 years before moving to Cromwell in 2001. Throughout his life, Arnold was devoted to his family. He always wanted to provide fun and adventurous places to explore, particularly as they drove across the country each summer, stopped to camp at national parks, visited other landmarks along the way, and kept family connections, especially with grandparents and relatives in Minnesota. He also gave himself to church ministry, both in Army Base Chapel programs and the Evangelical Covenant Church. In every location, Arnold taught Sunday School, held bible studies and served many leadership positions including several chairmanships, and he and Margaret were charter members of three new Covenant churches. He also served various Boards of Directors including North Park College, the Children's Home of Cromwell, and the East Coast Conference of the Covenant Church. In addition to his wife of 57 years, Arnold is survived by two sons and daughters-in-law, Peter A. and Suzanne Johnson of Laurel, MD, Philip A. and Wendy Johnson of Bristol; two daughters and a son-in-law, Linda M. Holmlund of Loveland, CO and Rev. Nancy L. and Wallace Ebner of Wilbraham, MA formerly of Kensington, CT; two sisters, Aileen Bergquist of Duluth, MN and Alice Kortebein of Lindenhurst, IL; twelve grandchildren, Mark and Curtis Johnson, Ben and Juli Johnson, Eric Holmlund and his wife Melissa, Carrie, Daryl, and Michael Holmlund, David Ebner and his wife Jesse, Laura, Karen, and Ellen Ebner; and two great-grandchildren, Josiah Holmlund and Emmanuelle Joy Holmlund. Funeral Services will be held on Wednesday, April 27, 2005 at 11:00 AM at Bethany Covenant Church, 785 Mill St. Berlin. A reception will follow at the church. Burial, with full military honors, will be in Arlington National Cemetery on June 7, 2005 at 9:00 AM. Calling hours are Tuesday evening from 5:30 to 8:00 PM at Erickson-Hansen Funeral Home, 411 S. Main St., New Britain. Memorial donations may be made to the Benevolent Care Fund of Covenant Village, 52 Missionary Rd, Cromwell, CT 06416, or to the Children's Home of Cromwell, Hicksville Rd., Cromwell, CT 06416.