Patty Johnston

Patty (Harris) Johnston, a longtime Cobb County teacher, and loving wife, mother and grandmother, died Jan. 20, 2022 after a battle with kidney disease. She was 81. Funeral Service will be held at 2:00 pm on Sunday, January 23, 2022 at Mercy Hill Church (formerly Mount Calvary Baptist Church) in Marietta, GA with Rev. Tony Vismore officiating. Interment will be held 11:00 am Monday, January 24, 2022 at Cheatham Hill Memorial Park in Marietta, Georgia with Rev. Bill Rorie and Dr. William Camp officiating. She is preceded in death by her sister, Peggy, and her parents, David Andrews Harris and Evelyn Ruth Hill Harris.

Patty filled her life with reading, serving, learning, serving and caring for people and animals. Her career as an educator included teaching at Eastside, Kennesaw and Lewis elementary schools from the early 1970s to 2001. Patty mostly taught third grade with stints in first grade. She retired from Cobb County Schools in 2001. Prior to teaching in Cobb County, Patty taught in Nashville, Tennessee, and San Jose, California. Patty was born on May 30, 1940 in Lewisburg, Tennessee, with her twin sister, Peggy Harris. Patty graduated as valedictorian from Marshall County High School in 1958 and Martin Methodist College in 1960. She then graduated from Tennessee Tech in 1962. At college, Patty met Paul Johnston. They were married on Aug. 2, 1963, and moved from Tennessee to California. They moved to Marietta in 1969 and Patty earned a master's degree from the University of West Georgia in 1977. As adults, Patty and Peggy shared a love of reading and antiques. With their spouses, they searched glass shows and antique shops to grow Patty's collection of Fostoria glassware and Blue Ridge pottery. She could spot a fake from far away. Patty's love of God was evident in her daily life and her involvement in church activities, including nearly five decades at Mount Calvary Baptist Church in Marietta. She taught Sunday school and Awana Bible lessons for children, regularly participated in Bible studies, served on various committees, and spent countless hours decorating, providing food and organizing for potlucks and other church events. She was a voracious reader who often swapped books with her friends and fellow church members. She gave to causes locally and beyond. She was a longtime volunteer at the Humane Society of Cobb County, where she brought adoptable pets to seniors and special needs individuals through its pet assisted therapy program. She and Paul moved to Watkinsville in Oconee County in 2017 to be closer to their sons, Andy and Steven, and their families. They attended Grace Fellowship in Bogart, Georgia.

Survivors include her husband, Paul, sister Nancy Harris Reddick, sons Andy and Steven, daughters-in-law Lori and Anastasiya, and grandchildren Ty, Katherine and Alexander.

The family will receive friends on Sunday, January 23, 2022 from 12:00 pm until 2:00 pm at Mercy Hill Church (formerly Mount Calvary Baptist Church) in Marietta, GA.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the Cobb County Humane Society.

Online guest book at www.westcobbfuneralhome.com .