Obituary of George Wm. Johnston

George Wm. Johnston, Jr. George William Johnston, Jr. passed away on Wednesday, May 9, 2012 in Haven Hospice at JFK Medical Center in Edison. Born in Elizabeth, NJ to the late George William Johnston, Sr. and Beatrice Candela, George grew up in Roselle Park and attended MKSD in Trenton, NJ after becoming deaf at the age of 5 from scarlet fever. He graduated MKSD and continued his studies at Gallaudet University. He graduated in 1960, attended Catholic University for his Masters Degree and later the University of Cincinnati for ABD to his doctorate in Deaf Ed. George married Rosemarie Johnston in 1975 and automatically became a father of two. They moved to Plainfield, NJ from New York and in 1980, their son Atom was born. George had many great accomplishments throughout his life. He was an award winning actor in college winning multiple best actor awards and Gallaudet's first "most versatile actor" award in 1960. He also won awards in humor and song signing, George developed his own traveling comedy show called the "Gee Jay Show" and performed all over the country. He also worked with the Deaf Youth Leadership Camp. He did this for 17 years, teaching logical thinking and performing arts, while bringing his "Gee Jay Show" to the camp using campers as actors/actresses. George also had numerous athletic achievements, none higher than being an Olympic wrestling champion in the 1961 Deaf Olympics at Helsinki, Finland. He received a silver medal in freestyle wrestling, and became the FIRST American to medal in Greco Roman wrestling with a bronze. After graduating Gallaudet in 1960, he was hired as a chemistry professor. George went on to teach for a total of 52 years in numerous schools and universities as an adjunct. He spent 35 years as a teacher in Jersey City Public Schools, winning "Teacher of the Year" in 1998. George was the first certified sign language teacher in New Jersey, and was an active member of NAD, NTD, and NJAD. He will be sadly missed by his surviving wife of 37 years, Rosemarie Johnston, his sons Atom, Tommy, and Michael, and half sisters Patti, Cindy, and Gigi. Family and friends are invited to attend the visitation on Saturday, May 12, 2012 from 1-3 PM and 5-7 PM in the McCriskin - Gustafson Home for Funerals, 2425 Plainfield Ave., South Plainfield, NJ 07080. Cremation will be private. In Lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be sent to the YLC Foundation, c/o NAD, 8630 Fenton St., Suite 820, Sliver Spring, MD 20910.