Anne Johnson, 81; nurse was a favorite of many children

ANNE C. JOHNSON

Anne C. (O'Day) Johnson was a nurse by profession, but her passion for caring for people extended beyond her job and into every aspect of her life, her niece and friends said.

Whenever someone in her family was sick, Mrs. Johnson would accompany her relative to the doctor appointments to ensure her family received the best care, said her niece Nancy O'Mealey of Orange.

"She had 21 nieces and nephews, and we all felt like her favorite," O'Mealey said. "At any gathering, if you wanted to know where Anne was, all you had to do was listen for the laughter."

Mrs. Johnson, of Framingham, died of complications from a stroke Friday at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston. She was 81.

Mrs. Johnson was born in Fair Haven, Vt. She received a certificate in nursing in 1947 from St. Vincent's Hospital School of Nursing in New York City. Twenty years later, she graduated from Boston College School of Nursing.

She worked at various hospitals, including in White River Junction, Vt., Albany, N.Y., and Rutland. She also worked for the Worcester and Framingham Visiting Nurses Association.

In the 1970s, she started teaching nursing at Framingham Union Hospital. She also taught at Cushing Hospital in Framingham.

Mrs. Johnson was a Eucharistic minister at St. Bridget's Parish in Framingham and would bring Communion to patients at hospitals and nursing homes.

She met her husband, Harold, through a mutual friend in 1954. They were married in 1957, and in 1960, they moved to Long Avenue in Framingham.

"My fond memories of them go back to remembering how the entire neighborhood of little kids would be camped out on their living room floor reading Dr. Seuss books, which was quite remarkable considering that none of the kids were theirs!" said James Aucoin of Framingham, who lived near the Johnsons as a child.

"And of course, there were the regular trips over to their house for milk and cookies. There was Mrs. J. at the door, ready with the [treats]."

In addition to her husband, Mrs. Johnson leaves a sister, Peggy Brough of Vienna, Va.; and a brother, John O'Day of Hydeville, Vt.

A funeral Mass will be said at 9 a.m. tomorrow in St. Bridget's.