The Icelandic Canadian - 01.03.1974, Page 39

THE ICELANDIC CANADIAN
37
MATTIE HALLDORSON:-
MRS. KRISTIN JOHNSON
On the pathway of life one acquires
friends from many walks of life, with
different interests and opinions.. It is
interesting to reflect on the many
personalities one encounters along the
way, some fleetingly, others for a long-
er or shorter time- But all make an im-
pact in one way or another.
One person who made a lasting im-
pression on me was Mrs. Kristin John-
son. I feel the richer for having her as
a good friend for many years.
Mrs. Johnson was a member of The
First Lutheran Church choir for a long
time. She was the librarian and spent
hours cataloguing the music and keep-
ing it in good repair. She was intoler-
ant of careless handling of any music.
From as far back as 1947 she made
costumes for the Christmas Pageant
at the church.
Over lunch one day with her daugh-
ter Eileen, Mrs. W. D. M.. Stewart,
she recounted the various hobbies her
Mother had. Eileen described a Mac-
rame purse, which must be just
beautiful. To mention a few of her
interests she mastered the making of
pillow lace, -made with a bobbin over
a pillow. It is intricate work with the
threads set on a frame for the design.
Kristin demonstrated this work in a
downtown store a few years ago. She
also did oil painting, sculpture, which
included a bust of Nikulas Ottensen,
a Winnipeg pioneer. She was an excel-
lent photographer and had a great
number of slides among them over
4,000 of scenery and people from
Iceland. She had a complete stamp col-
lection with first covers included. She
pursued these hobbies with great en-
thusiasm, using the best of equipment
and her recreation room was an art
museum.
Mrs. Johnson was made an Honor-
ary Life Member of the Winnipeg
Camera Club and was a member of
the Handicraft Guild.
Kristin drove an automobile until
her death. As a matter of interest she
was taking driving instructions and
took her last defensive lesson ten days
before she died.
In some little things she was per-
haps careful of her money but in
others she was philanthropic. She
helped a number of people in need,
some known and others unknown to
the family. She was concerned about
the young people who were having
difficulty in pursuing their studies.
I have heard that she gave two or
three pianos to pupils who showed
talent in the field of music.
Her husband, GuSmundur Julius,
“Mundi Barber” as he was affectionate-
ely called, was very appreciative of her
accomplishments in the pursuit of her
hobbies. He owned and operated a
flourishing business. Kristin was a
good bookkeeper and she kept meticu-
lous records of all expenditures, both
in the home and the barber shop.
Guffmundur was the son of Bjorn
and GuSrun Johnson and Kristin the
daughter of Ketill and Soffia Valgard-
son of Gimli.
What great satisfaction Kristin must
have enjoyed with her variety of inter-
ests and hobbies which filled many an
hour of pleasure for her.