Pamela Johnson, 71

Pamela Charlton Johnson passed away peacefully in Post Falls on Dec. 20, 2025, at the age of 71. She was an outrageously devoted wife, mother, grandmother, a gifted artist and maker, and a faithful follower of Jesus.

Born on March 1, 1954, in Orange, N.J., Pam showed an interest in the visual and performing arts from a young age. At 13, she moved with her family to California’s Bay Area and later to Santa Barbara, where she graduated from San Marcos High School. There, she joined the cast of the school musical and went on to work as a singing waitress at John’s At The Beach in Ventura, followed by a fateful vocal audition for a new band called Uncle Duck. Among the band’s members was guitarist and singer Dennis Johnson, whom she fell in love with and eventually married. Uncle Duck performed as the house band for the Santa Barbara Inn for several years and played professionally across California through the 1970s.

Pam and Dennis moved to California’s Central Coast in the early '80s to build a home and raise their two children. Together, they made a talented team: Dennis as a homebuilder, and Pam as a designer and decorator. Every room Pam inhabited, she made irresistibly beautiful. She will long be remembered for the spaces she created, from the house on Ruby Lane in Nipomo where both her children held their weddings, to her final home in Post Falls, Idaho. Each represented Pam’s signature grace, elegance and charm.

As a servant of Jesus, Pam brought her skills to New Life Church in Pismo Beach, Calif., where she joined the staff to oversee all visual aspects of the space for many years, including a lobby gallery filled with members’ artwork, all seasonal and series-related visuals and a major renovation of the worship center. When she and Dennis retired to Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, in 2005, she quickly became an asset to Lake City Church and later to Legacy Church in Liberty Lake. Her inventive set pieces for pastors’ sermon series brought dimension and impact to the messages they supported. 

In both California and Idaho, Pam attracted a following for the many art pieces she crafted and sold at vintage fairs and boutiques across the West, from soft-sculpted Wee Be Bunnies and hand-felted gnomes to jewelry made with antique glass and music. She also helped raise thousands of dollars for Convoy of Hope’s women’s empowerment initiatives through popular craft project workshops at Legacy Church. No question, Pam was a true artist who took to heart the mandate in 1 Thessalonians 4:11 to “lead a quiet life” and “work with your hands.”

Even in her final days of battling a recurrence of breast cancer, Pam exuded kindness, humor, hospitality and warmth. She served as the bonding agent for a family often spread across the globe, and maintained the network of her children, grandchildren and siblings with deep care and intention. 

She is preceded by her parents, Zeke Lohrke and Nancy Meeker, and her brother, William Tyler Lohrke. She leaves behind her husband, Dennis Johnson of Post Falls, Idaho; Jaime Lewis of San Luis Obispo, Calif.; Dustin Johnson of Oklahoma City; sister, Kate Bennett of Lompoc, Calif.; and beloved grandchildren Karise, Dresden, Corban, Phoebe, Lucia and Zephyr.

A memorial service will be held Jan. 17 at 11 a.m. at Legacy Church, 23129 E. Mission Ave., Liberty Lake, Wash.