Charles F. Johnson

Obituary for Charles Fredrick Johnson February 21, 1945 – August 25, 2025

Charles Fredrick Johnson — a man whose life spanned continents, languages, and lifetimes — passed away peacefully in hospice care, surrounded by family.

Born in Fort Worth, Texas, Charlie was the eldest son of Commander Charles F. Johnson, Sr., a decorated naval officer, and Lieutenant Margaret “Claire” Winter Johnson, a naval officer and gifted photographer. His early years were filled with deep love and early loss. After his mother’s death, Charlie’s world was reshaped by grief, family change, and the lingering shadows of war. By the age of fourteen, he had set out on his own.

Charlie’s life was defined by reinvention. After an honorable discharge from the Air Force, he returned to New York City, immersing himself in the study of engineering, languages, art, and religion. He married young, became a father to two sons, Craig and Keith, and began a journey marked by both triumph and tragedy.

His second chance at love came when he met Alice — a nurse whose steady devotion became the anchor of his life. Together they raised two children, Tracy and Peter, and built a marriage defined by resilience, humor, and unwavering partnership. Work took Charlie across the globe — to Bermuda, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Israel, India, Turkey, and Pakistan — where he oversaw the construction of power plants and immersed himself in history, culture, and faith.

Charlie spoke Arabic and Hebrew, translated the Bible, studied ancient texts from Aramaic to Ancient Greek, and found joy in learning to read in countless other languages. He was also a devoted reader and writer of fiction, with a lifelong love of storytelling.

In retirement, Charlie and Alice traveled, loved, and endured together. When cancer came, he met it with characteristic defiance — fighting it back again and again over more than a decade. The battle left scars, but it also revealed his quiet, unshakable courage.

Charlie will be remembered as a man who lived many lives — a runaway, a builder, a traveler, a seeker, a husband, a father, a brother, a fighter, and most of all: a gifted storyteller. He leaves behind his beloved wife, Alice; his children, Tracy and Peter; his grandchildren; his brother, Tommy; his sister, Marie; and a story all his own — one that reminds us that redemption is always possible, and that love can shape even the most restless of lives.