Mary Ellen Johnson

Mary Ellen Johnson was born on August 16th, 1943 in Enumclaw, WA to parents, Joseph and Marie Satterlund. Mary grew up in Buckley, WA and was the fourth of seven children. She was a hard worker and often helped care for her siblings. Her older brothers, Kerby and Gary played the guitar, so it wasn’t long until Mary learned how to play too. Her love of music grew and when she was 12 years old, she began taking singing lessons. Mary was a natural, and spent most of her life singing in choirs, in church, at special events, and later in a Bluegrass band. She also developed a love for horses and became an accomplished rider. She was friends with a veterinarian in town who allowed her to ride his horses whenever she liked. She even won medals for barrel racing.  

As Mary grew older, a young man by the name of Johnny Johnson caught her eye. He was often seen at the local hang out, driving his fancy 1957 Chevy.  Mary obviously caught Johnny’s eye too and they were married as soon as she graduated in 1961.                                                                                                                                                                                                               

When John’s dad became disabled, Mary and John took over running the family dairy farm. They worked hard milking a small herd of cattle on their own, until they decided it was time to give up farming and start a family. In 1965 Mary gave birth to their son, Andy and John took a job at Farman’s Pickles. In 1970, they adopted their daughter Kristi.

Mary became an accomplished cake decorator and baker. She sold her brownies and cookies at various retail stores in Enumclaw and in the mid 1980’s, even opened up a sandwich shop in Buckley called, “Marries Munchies”.  She also held various retail jobs but eventually settled as a pharmacy tech at a drugstore in Buckley where she worked until she retired in 2014.

Mary was a near life-long member of Hillside Community Church (formerly Country Bible Church). She loved the Lord and spent many years teaching Sunday school, directing the choir, cleaning the church, and serving Him wherever she could.

In 2001, Mary’s life took an unexpected turn when John went home to be with the Lord. It was a devastating loss, but Mary leaned on God to see her through. She invested her time in her family and loved being a grandma to her four grandsons. She spent a lot of time cheering them on at their sporting events, making cakes for their birthdays and taking interest in whatever was interesting to them. She also spent a lot of time with friends having coffee every morning at McDonalds. It was there that God surprised her with the next chapter of her life when she met Fred Eaton and they were married in September of 2014.

God not only opened a new chapter with Fred, but also with Fred’s family when she gained 5 stepchildren, whom she loved, 13 grandchildren and 6 great-grandchildren. Fred’s love and care for Mary was so beautiful in the last 8 years of her life that her family truly considers him a gift from God.

Mary was preceded in death by her parents, Joseph and Marie Satterlund; sister, Michelle Gallion; brothers Kirby and Gary Satterlund; and husband, John Johnson. She is survived by her husband Fred Eaton;  son, Andy Johnson (Connie); daughter, Kristi Terrell (Andy); grandsons, Robby Johnson (Anna); Tyler Terrell, Kyle Terrell and Cameron Terrell; sisters, Christine Schamer (Joe), Pam Rooney, and Margaret Provine (Tony); stepdaughter, Angela Eaton (Kyle); stepsons, Chris Eaton (Becky), Jon Eaton (Laura), Pat Eaton (Darcy), and Jeremy Eaton (Amanda) and their families; along with numerous nieces and nephews.

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