Alvena Johnson (Currit)
Columbia Basin Herald | UPDATED 2 days, 12 hours AGO
Alvena Johnson was a woman of faith who adored her family and worked to ensure they were all happy.
Alvena Frances Johnson of Moses Lake, Wash., passed away Tuesday, March 10, 2026, at the age of 94. With her family present, she passed peacefully in her sleep at 12:20 a.m.
Alvena was born to Rosetta (Rosie) (Robison) Currit and Lucian (Shorty) Currit in Payette County, Idaho, on Jan. 1, 1932, New Year’s Day.
Alvena spent most of her childhood in the Finn Settlement outside of Mount Vernon, Wash., with her siblings Charles, Paul, Rosetta and Rosa Lee.
After graduating from Sedro Wooley High School, Alvena went to business school in Boise, Idaho, before returning to work in the Eagle Roost Cafe in Ferndale, Wash., with her family where she met David (Dave) Johnson.
In 1952, she married Dave Johnson and began their 63-year-long marriage together. Alvena moved with Dave through his Navy career from Hawaii to Massachusetts and throughout Washington. She loved serving her country as a military wife. She was blessed with two daughters, Margaret (Peggy) Lefave and Laura Smith.
Alvena settled in Ephrata, Wash., in 1984. She worked at Comprehensive Health, Hormel and Aiken Attorneys, and Grant County District Court as a court reporter during her working years. She was a Lady of the Elks Club, serving in several roles throughout the years.
Alvena and Dave moved to Moses Lake in 1997. She lived there until her passing.
Alvena was a lifelong member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. She believed that family should work together and play together. She wanted her family to learn to be kind, courteous, help people in need, always include our Heavenly Father in their prayers, and to love one another.
In addition to her love of family, she treasured her time she spent doing genealogy and writing about her life and the lives of others. She was an avid collector of the history of all those whom she loved. She did expensive genealogy research and wrote several collections of family history. She felt it was important to seek out our families' past and future. She felt that we could learn many valuable lessons from their stories. In the last year she shared her extensive knowledge of genealogy at her church where she gave a speech on the subject.
Alvena is survived by her daughter, Peggy, and her husband, Rick Lefave, of Soap Lake, Wash.; her daughter, Laura, and her husband, Keith Smith, of Othello, Wash.; her sister, Rosa Lee Ingram; her eight grandchildren, 19 great-grandchildren, and one great-great grandchild.
She is preceded in death by her husband, Dave; her brothers, Charles and Paul; her sister, Rosetta; and her parents Shorty and Rosie.
The Memorial service will take place at 2 p.m. Saturday, April 4, 2026, at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 1036 W Rose Ave., Moses Lake, WA 98837.
Interment will be held at The Washington State Veterans Cemetery, 21702 W Espanola Road, Medical Lake, Wash., on Friday, April 10, 2026, at 1:45 p.m.