Veneta I. Johnson

A memorial service for Veneta I. Johnson will be held on Thursday, October 31, 2024, at 10:30 a.m. at the Holdrege Methodist Church in Holdrege, Nebraska with Pastor Sarah Fisher and Mr. Gary Lea (Veneta's grandson) officiating. Inurnment will follow at the Prairie Home Cemetery in Holdrege, Nebraska.

Veneta "Nita" Irene (Murphy) Johnson, 97, died peacefully on Monday, October 21, 2024, at Christian Homes Care Community in Holdrege. Born on April 10, 1927, near Huntley, Nebraska, to Clarence and Ethel (Maret) Murphy, Veneta grew up in the Holdrege area, graduating from Holdrege High School in 1944. Later that year, she married Robert Raymond "Bob" Johnson of Atlanta, NE, in a double wedding ceremony with her sister and husband, the late Virginia and Alvin "Tony" Harms.

When they were first married, Veneta and Bob lived in the washhouse Bob's mother, Bessie (Bell) Johnson (later, Brooks), had prepared for them on the farm. Just a short while later, Veneta and Bob moved to the Platte River Valley south of Elm Creek and Odessa in Phelps County, renting farms until they were able to buy their own. Here, they raised their family of five children. Like most of their neighbors, they grew corn and hay and bits of other crops and kept cattle, hogs, and chickens.

In the early summer, after the baby chicks had grown enough to move to the chicken house, she and Bob would clean up the brooder house so their three daughters could use it as their playhouse. The girls spent many happy hours there making mud pies and otherwise pretending to be adults.

Veneta was a hard worker who could be found along with the rest of the family in the hayfield or beside the irrigation ditch, in the feedlot, in the hog barn, or vaccinating animals. In addition, she could be counted upon to provide hearty nourishment for the crew.

Veneta was quite the entrepreneur. It was her idea to start a tomato U-Pick on part of the land, and a year or two later, Bob started his watermelon business. The two enterprises brought some extra money to the family and kept everyone busy planting, hoeing (for 25 cents a row), and picking. Veneta had always been shy, but she summoned the courage to peddle some of her tomatoes to the stores in town. She also became a columnist for several area newspapers, using an ancient typewriter to write stories about who visited whom and the "good time had by all."

She was a socialite in her own right as a member of a neighborhood church women's club and as a leader in the local 4-H club. In her senior years, she belonged to bowling teams, dance clubs, and card-playing clubs. Veneta was a regular at both the First United Methodist Church in Kearney and the Holdrege Methodist Church in Holdrege. She also enjoyed traveling to visit family and friends in Sweden, China, and Canada as well as around the United States.

From an early age, Veneta was conscientious about her appearance. Bob told the family that before he and Veneta were married, her father confided to him that Veneta would be "a pretty good woman" if she would just stop combing her hair all the time! Indeed, Veneta and her comb and lipstick were never far apart. Whenever she saw her reflection in a store window, she would do a quick touch-up. Her children remember that on the farm, she never went to the yard to greet a visitor or to the mailbox at the corner without first combing her hair and applying lipstick. When brush rollers were invented, they became a part of her daily beauty routine. In fact, if only someone had thought of it, Veneta with her brush rollers could probably have been used as a TV antenna!

She was an able seamstress who made doll clothes, school clothes, bridesmaid gowns, and suits – you name it, she could make it.

Veneta earned the nickname "Polyanna," after the literary character of that name who always put a positive face on every negative. Once she almost won a new car on a radio contest but lost out to someone whose entry bearing the same answer had been postmarked before Veneta's entry. "He probably needed it more than us," she said. Hurtful actions against her were handled quietly and by trying to understand the mindset of the other person. She handled many a difficult situation by looking at the bright side of things or throwing extra muscle into the garden and filling the cellar with home-canned goods.

One of her oft-used expressions was, "It could've been worse."

Veneta led by example. She never swore, she had one taste of alcohol and hated it, she knew instinctively that smoking was bad, she was careful with her money but always ready to contribute to a good cause, always happy to buy new shoes or boots or whatever for the grandchildren.

Veneta is survived by her daughters, Joan (Dennis) Reiter of Elm Creek, Nebraska; and Mary Milander (David Thompson) of Saint John, NB, Canada; her sons, Raul Johnson of Kearney, Nebraska and Steve Johnson of Elm Creek; son-in-law, Dale Osborn of Chanhassen, Minnesota; a brother, Merle (Janet) Murphy of Beatrice, Nebraska; and a sister, Marcia Burman of Sumner, Nebraska; 17 grandchildren, and 33 great-grandchildren; sisters-in-law Shirley Johnson of Holdrege; Kathleen Murphy of Albuquerque, New Mexico; and Dee Holm of Greeley, Colorado; and many nieces and nephews.

In addition to her parents, Veneta was predeceased by her husband, Robert, and her daughter, Jean Osborn; special friend, Jerry Meier; sisters, Virginia (Alvin "Tony") Harms and Jeanne (Dean) Johnson; her brothers, Don Murphy and Richard "Dick" Murphy; brothers-in-law, Kenneth (Sally) Johnson, George (Bonnie and Betty) Johnson, James (Elinor) Johnson, Charles (Cheera) Johnson, Richard Johnson and Norman Burman.

A memorial book signing will be held on Wednesday, October 30, 2024, from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. with family greeting friends from 6:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at the Nelson-Bauer Funeral Home in Holdrege.

Memorials in Veneta's honor are suggested to an organization of your choosing.

Expressions of caring and kindness can be sent to the family at www.nelsonbauerfh.com

The Nelson-Bauer Funeral Home in Holdrege is in charge of the arrangements.