Funeral services for Billie Frances (Allen) Johnson, age 89, of Abilene, formerly of Brownwood, will be held at 2:00 PM, Wednesday in the Heartland Funeral Home Chapel with Bill Slaymaker officiating. Burial will follow in Greenleaf Cemetery. Visitation was held Tuesday evening.
Billie passed away on Saturday, October 13, 2018, in Abilene.
Billie Frances Allen was born March 11, 1929 in Brownwood, to Frank and Minnie Belle (Smith) Allen. They were in the grocery business for many years and owned Frank Allen’s Grocery. She was a graduate of Brownwood High and attended Howard Payne College.
She married her childhood sweetheart, Herchel Johnson, on July 9, 1949, while he was home on leave from the U.S. Army. Herchel was stationed in Germany and later Greece, which allowed them to tour many of the European countries. She loved telling stories of traveling to Germany with a 6 month baby and all the sights of post war Germany. She continued to tell of her experiences for the rest of her life.
Billie will be remembered as a strong, independent, feisty woman who took great pride in caring for her family, home and yard.
Sugar, as her great grandchildren called her, will be missed beyond words, but we know she is with God and those that she has missed for so long. She is preceded in death by her parents, Frank and Minnie Belle Allen, and her husband of 49 years, Herchel Johnson.
Survivors include her daughter Nan Gentry and her husband Lynn of Abilene, son Terry Johnson of Seattle WA, son Jeff Johnson and his wife Brenda of Lynchburg VA, grandsons Jody Gentry of San Angelo, and Ryan Crawford of Amarillo, granddaughters Amy Reese and her husband Perry of Spring, Heather Crawford of Amarillo, and Kaitlyn Johnson of Lynchburg VA, great-grandsons Forrest Gentry of San Angelo, Slade and Gunner Reese of Spring, great-granddaughters, Aurelie and Lola Gentry of San Angelo, and great-great-granddaughter Willow Gentry of San Angelo.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorials to made to your local Meals on Wheels.
Condolences, memories and tributes can be offered to the family online at heartlandfuneralhome.net
