Mrs. Adele Johnson

A Memorial Service For Adele Johnson: Adele Winans-Johnson was no ordinary person and thus there is no way to detail the life she lived in what would be considered an ordinary obituary. She entered the world on March 31, 1925 at 2:50 a.m., right about the time a good party would be getting started. She was the youngest daughter born to the late great Bishop Fred Winans and Pheba Feltus-Winans. Being raised sanctified didn’t stop Adele from falling in love with her favorite color. Jezebel Red, nor did it stop her from having a relationship with her Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Despite her zest for life and living it to the fullest, she endured the heartache of outliving her parents, as well as, all her siblings: Johnny, Fred, James, Tony, Mary, Andrew, Helen and Robert. Adele Winans-Johnson’s life was as exciting as any television drama, and everyday she lived, she delivered an Oscar winning performance. We could talk about the service she rendered at the Wayne County Juvenile Detention Center before she retired after more than 20 years of faithful service, or we could reminisce about the time, according to her brother James, Adele ignited the largest bar fights in modern day history. Before there was Dynasty’s ficticional character, Alexis Carrington Colby Dexter, our family had Adele Winans Johnson. Adele set fashion trends and could out dress any character on television. Adele put the DIVA in the word DIVA. When Adele entered a room it was dramatic and memorable, and once she left a place it would never be the same again. Adele was over the top, and so was her love for her family. Maybe it was in the way she called you “DEAR” or the hug and kiss she gave or the smile that let you know she approved of whatever you were doing, or maybe she called you out, or told you exactly how she really felt or what she really thought, but one thing is for sure she perfected the role of Adele Winans-Johnson and no one could have played it any better. If Adele were here she’d say she married the love of her life, Jim Johnson, and lost him, but it was better to have loved and lost than not to have loved at all. She would speak fondly of her nephew James Winans, and certainly shed a tear over her nephews and nieces that preceded her in death. She would tell her great-nieces and nephews to keep doing what you’re doing. She would definitely say thank you to her great-niece Donna, for all her help and assistance and a great big thank you to anyone who took her to play her lottery or who spent three hours in the grocery store only for Adele to leave with four items. She would tell us how to perfectly cook a leg of lamb or how to make the best crust for peach cobblers. Adele Winans-Johnson leaves a beautiful legacy of living that shows us that rules don’t have to apply to you; raise hell often, live outside the box and growing old can be graceful and stylish.

Mrs. Adele Johnson

March 31, 1925 - May 6, 2018