Olive Ann “Bansy” Johnson

Olive Ann “Bansy” Tuttle Johnson Obituary

Olive Ann “Bansy” Tuttle Johnson passed away in Santa Fe, N.M., on Monday, April 6, 2020, surrounded by family members following a short illness. Bansy was born in Lewiston, Idaho, on April 2, 1929, to H. Lynn and Frances Tuttle. She grew up on an orchard-filled farm in Clarkston, Wash. Her lifelong love of the arts started early. She and her two sisters sang publicly as a trio, and she was a gifted artist.

After graduating from Clarkston High School, Bansy attended the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma, Wash. There, she met James Elmer “Jim” Johnson, her lifelong love and best friend. They married Aug. 28, 1949. Over the course of their marriage, the couple lived in Grangeville, Idaho; Seattle, Wash.; Washington, D.C.; Austin, Texas; and Arlington, Texas.

Bansy was a delightful, witty and compassionate person with a wonderful, delicate sense of humor. She was a lover of beauty in all its forms and was an enthusiastic gardener and bird watcher. Throughout her life, she shared her passion for classical music with all around her, teaching piano and voice lessons, singing in church choirs with her husband, Jim, and fostering the musical talents of her six daughters.

She was active in humanitarian and environmental causes and stayed attuned to events in the wider world even as those connections became more difficult. A spiritually curious person, Bansy enjoyed fellowship and comfort as a member of New World United Methodist Church during her last few years in Arlington. Her warm and giving nature won the hearts of family, friends, neighbors, music students, caretakers and many others whom she encountered. Following the death of her beloved husband, Jim, Bansy moved to Santa Fe, N.M., where her daughter, Merrin Johnson, and family ensured her final years were happy and full of love.

Bansy’s accomplishments in the arts were considerable. While completing her Bachelor of Music at the University of Texas at Arlington in 1976, she started writing arts reviews for The Arlington Citizen Journal, before moving on to The Arlington Daily News and the Fort Worth Star-Telegram Mid-Cities, ultimately becoming the arts editor covering events throughout the greater Dallas/Fort Worth area. She founded and served as the first president of the Arlington Arts Council and was a founding and committee member of the Arlington Choral Society.

She also served as president and board member of the Arlington Fine Arts League, the Arlington Music Teachers Association and the Friends of the University of Texas at Arlington Library. In addition, she was a board member of the Arlington Fielder Museum, the City of Arlington Arts Division, the Texas Girls’ Choir and the Arlington Music Teachers Association. Honors included the Marian Anderson Association 25 Year Award, the Texas Associated Press Award for commentary and criticism, three-time recipient of the Outstanding Contributions to the Arts from the Arlington Arts League and Arlington Arts Council Award, the SAI College Award for outstanding contributions to the community, Texas Art Education Association and Arlington Art Education Associations Friend of Art Education awards, the Linda Cordova Award for tireless promotion of the Arts in Arlington and Honorary Member Emeritus of the Fort Worth Piano Teachers Forum.

Bansy was preceded in death by her husband of 66 years, Jim Johnson; her parents, H. Lynn and Frances Tuttle; her brother and his wife, John and Junie Tuttle; and her “adopted” grandson, Nishant Soni. She is survived by her sisters, Frances Gilfry and Roxa Kreimeyer; and her daughters and their spouses, Frances Johnson (Steve Colvin), Jamie Pedrini (Francisco Castillo), Roxanna Patterson (Ron Patterson), Merrin Johnson (Walter Latham), Kristin Johnson and Kari Mariani.. She is also survived by her grandchildren, Tommy Pedrini, Joanna Patterson-Zachany, Natasha and James Patterson, Sarah Haines, Sean Johnson-Latham, Dylan Harcrow, and Kiarra, Damon and Antonio Mariani; great-grandaughter, Emma Haines; and her “adopted” family Bharat, Purnima and Niraj Soni.

The family would like to thank Jon Stewart of Arlington, Texas, for his endless love and support and the loving caregivers at The Legacy Santa Fe, especially Aaron Woodford, Erica Broncho and Leila Quintana.