Stephen Jonas Johnson

Stephen Jonas Johnson, 69, of Atlanta passed away on January 1, 2014 at Peachtree Christian Hospice. He will be reunited in heaven with the love of his life, Marianne Timmerman Johnson, after being apart for just one short year. Steve was born on October 22, 1944 in Alliance, NE and raised on his family farm in Bridgeport, NE. He received his bachelors in Psychology and Zoology from Arizona State University, an MBA in International Management from Thunderbird School of Global Management and his Ph.D. in Clinical Neuropsychology from the California School of Professional Psychology. After moving to Atlanta in 1979 for work at Emory Rehabilitation Center, he founded the Center for Cognitive Rehabilitation (CCR), which is committed to the treatment of people suffering from traumatic brain injury. One of his professional passions was forensics and he worked tirelessly to ensure that the truths of people's injuries were accurately reported. He also helped lead various professional organizations such as the Brain Injury Association of Georgia where he was instrumental in spearheading a successful campaign for helmet laws in the state of Georgia. After retirement from CCR in 2011 he began teaching continuing education courses, something he simply loved. One his greatest joys was playing with his 5 young grandchildren. The kids would take turns riding on Papa's lap, getting pulled around in a wagon, dressing Papa in whatever crazy wig or boa the kids fancied, reading endless books on his lap, and collecting special rocks. Steve was one of the most positive and optimistic persons one could ever meet. He genuinely had interest in every single person he encountered and had the ability to change people's lives with one good heart-to-heart conversation. He will forever be remembered for his depth of love, strong spirit, unwavering determination and devotion to family and friends. We will miss you dearly and love you "a million times around the world." Steve is preceded in death by his wife, Marianne Timmerman Johnson. He is survived by his daughter Sarah (Scott) Sloan; son, Jonas (Laura) Johnson, cherished grandchildren; Rhiannon(7), Patrick (6), Lilah (5), Emma (3) and Jonas Henry (1); sister-in-law, Dottie Johnson; brother-in-law, Joe Timmerman; many nieces, nephews, cousins and relatives. The funeral Mass will be held on Saturday January 18th at 12:30pm at Immaculate Heart of Mary Catholic Church. Following the funeral Mass, the family will receive friends in the reception hall. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Steve's name to the Brain Injury Association of Georgia.