Leonard A. Johnson Jr.

Leonard “Lenny” A. Johnson, 78, of Crofton, MD, passed away March 14, 2019. He was the beloved husband of Christine “Cookie” Johnson. He is also survived by sisters Marie Pfaff (Bob) and Emily Fern; daughter Kim Killion (Allen); step-children, John Gaines, Allison Gaines and Kristen Bell (Rob); grandchildren, Heather, Sean, Ryan; and step-grandchildren Madison and John and many cousins, nieces and nephews.

Lenny celebrated life with great joy and will always be remembered by his family and friends for how much he truly cared for others, his kind and generous spirit, his loyalty and his witty sense of humor. He was loved and admired by all who were blessed to know him.

Lenny graduated from Northwestern High School in 1958 and then went on to dedicate his life to fire service. He served over 42 years at fire departments in Prince George’s County including Brentwood Volunteer Fire Department as Driver, Company Officer, Chief, President and Chairman of the Board of Directors and  Chillum-Adelphi Volunteer Fire Department as a Fire Fighter. He was later appointed Division Chief for the Northern Division of Prince George’s County. He also was a member of the Prince Georges County Fire & EMS Departments Collapse Response Team. He also served over 19 years at the Washington, DC Fire Department and retired as Deputy Fire Chief Aide. In 1968, Lenny was awarded the distinguished District of Columbia Silver Medal of Valor for rescuing a child from a burning building and saving the child’s life. After retiring from the Prince George’s County and Washington, DC Fire Departments, Lenny went on to other careers including teaching at the Maryland Fire & Rescue Institute Logistical Support Section at the University of Maryland as a Level II Certified Fire Instructor.  He spent the last 23 years travelling the world as a Fire Protection/Life Safety Specialist with Marriott International, Inc. Lenny was one of the first pioneers of the inspection program at Marriott and was instrumental in the expansion of the program. He was also the department trainer for all new inspectors. He became known as the Ambassador for Fire Protection and Life Safety at Marriott. Lenny spent his final day working at Marriott doing what he loved.

Family will receive friends on Thursday, March 21, 2019 from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Beall Funeral Home, 6512 NW Crain Hwy (Rt. 3 South), Bowie, MD. A funeral mass will take place at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Catholic Church, 1800 Seton Dr., Crofton, MD on Friday, March 22, 2019 at 11 a.m. followed by interment at Fort Lincoln Cemetery. Reception will follow at Brentwood Fire Department. Memorial contributions may be made to the Maryland Fire-Rescue Services Memorial Foundation, Inc., Post Office Box 742, Annapolis, MD 21204 or at www.mdfirerescuehero.org.