Obituaries

Johnita passed at the age of 93. She was born in Okaloosa, Iowa, to Homer and Ada Morrison. She moved with her family in 1936 to Eureka, California, where she attended Eureka City Schools.

She met her first husband, Milard Olson, at a young age and moved to Los Angeles, California, where she had two sons. A few years later, after divorcing her first husband, she moved back to Arcata, California, where she met and married Clifton M. Kern and had three more children. Johnita was blessed with five children, six grandchildren, and eight great-grandchildren. She lived a long and colorful life. Spending most of her years waitressing and raising her family until her husband Cliff passed in 1974, when she decided to return to school to obtain a realtor’s license.


She loved being a realtor and helping others find that perfect home. She worked for Sellers Realty in Arcata until retiring in 1988. After retiring, she moved closer to her youngest and eldest boys in Santa Rosa, California, where she spent most of her time volunteering and traveling the United States and Canada in her motorhome. In 2015 she decided to move back to Eureka to be closer to family and friends. She enjoyed spending time at the Eureka Senior Center, where she made some great new friends — or with her friends Sue Scott and Greg Anderson. She kept in touch with her good friend John Lowry from Colorado via email and phone calls. In 2019, she could no longer live alone and decided to move to Timber Ridge in Eureka, where she lived until moving to the Hospice House.

Johnita was predeceased by her parents, three sisters, husband Clifton M. Kern, son Larry Kern, daughter Kathy Richards, granddaughter Heidi Olson, and daughter-in-law Pam Olson.

She is survived by her children Thomas Olson, Jim Olson, and Pamela Bower (Wayne), grandchildren Chad Olson (Marcia), Cheryl Steiner-Olson, Ian Olson, Stacy Juchtzer (Rick), Lori Davisson-Orozco (Billy), and Justin Mather (Christina), great-grandchildren Kaylee Steiner Olson, Logan Juchtzer, Halie Juchtzer, TJ Curran, Holly Davisson, Michael Mather, Jordan Mather, Hailey Vonaseek, and many nieces and nephews.

In Lieu of flowers, please make donations to your favorite charity or consider donating to one of the following: Hospice of Humboldt, 3327 Timber Fall Court, Eureka, CA 95503, or Humboldt Area Foundation-Dr. Richard Wolf memorial fund. This fund started the Eureka Dialysis Center. hafoundation.org

The family would like to thank Dr. Alan Matthews, Hospice House, Timber Ridge of Eureka, and Eureka Dialysis Center.

A special thank you to her good friend Sue Scott for all the hours spent visiting and checking in. Her nieces who took the time to visit and help in any way they could Vicki Dobrec, Irene Stevens, Willa, and Karen Kern-Steadman. No services are scheduled at this time.