William Lawrence Johnson passed away at Belvedere Heights on Thursday, December 25th, 2025. Age 89 years.

Beloved husband of Sharon for 66 years. Loving father of Steven Johnson (Manon Miron); Erika Johnson (Steve Raney); and the late Dana and Tracy. Cherished Grandpa of Nathan Johnson (Alisha); Shannon Todd (Bryan); Tyler Taylor (Natalie); Devin Taylor (Sarah); Sharon van der Meer (Steve); and the late Christy. Larry was deeply loved by his many great-grandchildren. Dear brother of Wayne Johnson; and Elyse (Johnson) Gough and her husband Doug. Fondly remembered by his nieces, nephews, other relatives, and friends.

The passing of your father is not something you can deal with by drawing from experience: it only happens once. It brings with it grief, loss, and emotions that are very intense and overwhelming at times.

Your father is the person who by example gives you strength and integrity and prepares you for the many adversaries that life can bring.

The passing of your father also opens up and brings to the forefront all the memories and wonderful times that you have held near and dear to your heart, it makes you revisit all the things in his life that made him the best father anyone could have.

Today we lost our father at 4:20 A.M. He was a man who worked hard and never hurt a soul during his life time, he was also a person who lived life with many passions that he held close to his heart: his wife Sharon (Hall) Johnson, his children, grandchildren and great grandchildren. He had pet nicknames for all of us.

First and foremost he taught us all to be proud Canadians but also to be proud of our heritage being the son of a man who immigrated to Canada from Bergen, Norway.

One of his passions was passing on stories of family, how his father married into the Parr family and commercial fished and how he loved spending his summers on the Mink Islands on Georgian Bay with his Parr cousins while they fished for a living.

Another passion was his job as a young man when he was a sailor for White Rose which became Shell Oil working the oil tankers on the Great Lakes, always telling us stories about the rough seas and storms he experienced on Lake Superior and stories about sailing the St. Lawrence River. This was a job he gave up once he got married and had children, but a job for which he never lost his passion.

He was a collector and over the course of his life collected many treasures that he has tried to preserve. He loved the work and fellowship he experienced through the Masonic Lodge and Shriners but mostly he was a man who worked very hard to be the best father he could.

Dad not sure if you have passed on to the Grand Lodge above or Valhalla in keeping with your Norwegian heritage, but you are with your Mom and Dad, daughters Tracy and Dana (pre-deceased) and your Parr cousins, either fishing on the tug the “Who Cares” or sailing the big lakers, may you experience the sun in your face, light winds and fair seas and the smell of the open water. Love you Dad, we will see you again when we make it to the other side.

As was Larry’s wish, cremation has taken place.

A celebration of Larry’s life will take place on Saturday, May 30th from 1:00 – 4:00 P.M. at 26 Nobel Road.

As expressions of sympathy, donations to SickKids Foundation, or Shriners Hospital for Children would be appreciated.