Thomas R "Tom" Johnston

Here is Tom’s obituary, in his own words (which will not surprise anyone who knew him!) …and I think to myself, what a wonderful world! I was born October 7, 1938, in Denver, CO to Ralph and Ruby Johnston with a built-in 2-year-old sister, Lucille. We lived in 4 different neighborhoods in East Denver. I went to Wyman Grade School and Grove Junior High. In junior high, at age 12, I became the youngest Denver Post carrier ever hired. Yes, I was already bigger than most 13- and 14-year-olds. I had my route for 26 months. We moved west to Lakewood in the middle of ninth grade. I graduated from Lakewood High School and went on to attend the University of Colorado Boulder. 

In the summer of 1953, I met an attendant at the Eldorado Springs swimming pool. Her name was Beverly Burkey, and we married in 1958. We bought our first house 3 years later. The house was at the corner of 31st and Baseline. There was a turkey farm about a block west and a half dozen new homes going up on 35th. Baseline was a dirt road. 

We were both active in our community. I was elected President of the Boulder Jaycees in 1967, and we grew our membership to 270; the second largest service club only to Boulder Rotary. I went on to serve two terms as the Executive Vice President of the Colorado Jaycees. I was presented with the Jaycee International Senatorship Award. The local club does this. Only about fifteen have been presented with this award in the history of the Boulder Jaycees. I was a member of the Boulder Chamber of Commerce for thirty-five-plus years and a member of Boulder Rotary for twenty years. I was president of the Basemar Merchant Association and Flatirons Country Club. I served on the YMCA Board of Directors, was a Boy Scout leader and PTO president. In 1975 I started Buffalo Lock and Key. After 29 years my oldest daughter Cindy bought the business and operates the business in its original location, the Basemar Shopping Center, albeit she now calls it Buffalo Security. 

One of my passions was being a big and small game hunter. In the words of the song “I Did It My Way” by Paul Anka, “regrets, I had a few, too few to mention. But through it all when there was doubt, I ate it up and spit it out. I faced it all and I stood tall and did it my way.” As my eyelids are becoming heavy, I have a smile on my face. Not because my life was perfect, it was not. It is because of what I have, and I have been blessed. Two great-grandchildren, Arya (Smoky) and Robert (Robbie), seven grandchildren; Michael, Jennifer (Kyle), Trevor (Serenity), Heather (Carrie), Tommy, Tyler, and Brett; three children; Cindy (Joe), Karen (Rob), and Kirk (Terri) and to me, the most perfect wife in the whole world, Beverly.

Here is a tribute to Tom from his children: Dad was larger than life, both in his physical presence and in personality. “I did it my way” does not even scratch the surface. How do you describe someone’s life who told his children the top of his head was bald because the hair did not grow above 6’5” just like the tree line on the Rocky Mountains. When asked how tall he was he always responded 5’18”, some people got it, some did not. The standing joke in the family was that ‘someone’ would do it, he was that someone. He was always home for dinner, where we sat as a family and ate. No topic was taboo, and he never lied to us or shied away from a subject. He demanded the best from us, and usually, he got it. He always said, “Don’t do as I do, do as I say” but, ‘they’ always say “kids watch what you do, not what you say.” We saw parents involved in their community, with dozens of lifetime friends. He was ‘someone’ who had our back, no matter what. We will always be grateful for the examples he set and the lessons he taught. 

Contributions can be made to:

Boulder Community Health Foundation 4747 Arapahoe Avenue, Boulder, CO 80303; 

https://www.bch.org/foundation/ 

Trinity Lutheran Church 2200 Broadway Boulder, CO 80302;

https://trinityboulder.org/ 

A private family service was held on Nov 3, 2024.