The Icelandic Canadian - 01.05.2008, Qupperneq 13

Vol. 61 #2
THE ICELANDIC CANADIAN
103
of the Canadian pioneers. His great-grand-
father, Daniel, was mentioned before as a
leader who looked after the welfare of oth-
ers. Donald K’s mother, Fjola, was also a
care giver. She passed on a sense of identity
through the family book she compiled with
stories of her ancestors and poetry of her
Afi. She passed on kindness of spirit, gen-
erosity of soul, stimulation of mind, care of
body, purpose of intention, gift of under-
standing, importance of family, tenacity of
character, and finally, truth, honour, and
face the challenge.
What has Donald K passed on to not
only his children, but also to many stu-
dents? His advice is “do what you really
love to do, do what you’re really good at,
and, do it with people that you love to be
with, both internally in the organization,
and externally.” His daughter, Virginia,
also included that “he encouraged us not to
settle and to aim high....he always empha-
sized health.... so that you have the stamina
and energy to do what you need to do, and
be happy while you’re doing it.”
Donald K’s children are very accom-
plished. Virginia is a clothing/textile
designer and illustrator. Her line is avail-
able in more than 100 stores worldwide as
well as her Toronto store. Carter is work-
ing on his PhD at the University of
Maryland. His area of study is Ethnic
Conflict and, with a fluency in Russian, he
is conducting field research on
Moldova/Transnistria and
Georgia/Abkhazia. Jessica studied art in
Florence, Italy, for several years and is in
Toronto with the Fairmont Royal York
Hotel security department.
THE CONCLUSION
The above is a presentation of the life
of Donald K. Johnson, his ancestors, his
family, his philosophy, and his philan-
thropy. What would Donald Kenneth
reply when asked “Who do you think you
are?” per the television program. Well, his
mother, Fjola, was deliberately prophetic.
His name, Donald, is Celtic for world
leader and, Kenneth, is Celtic for hand-
some. As well, before settling in Iceland c.a.
874, his ancestors can be traced to Scotland
and Ireland. Perhaps, he is related to
Andrew Carnegie.