Sharon Johnson - Obituary

haron LeiJoy (Stanley) Johnson, of Annapolis, died on Wednesday, November 6, 2013. She was 79., Born on January 9, 1934 in Dixon, IL, a daughter of Robert E. and Mary Ellen (Howard) Stanley, Sharon was raised in western Kentucky and Rock Island, IL. She earned a BS in chemistry from Iowa State University in 1955 and a PhD in chemistry from Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1959, at a time when few women trained for careers in science. She was employed as a chemist at Mellon Institute, Pittsburgh, PA (1959-1965); Vassar College, Poughkeepsie, NY (1965-1966), Westinghouse Research Labs, Pittsburgh, PA (1966-1967); University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine (1967-1977); New York Polytechnic Institute, Brooklyn, NY (1977-1978); National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD (1978-1986); and the Food and Drug Administration, Rockville, MD (1989-1990). After having been denied tenure despite a highly successful publication and grant record, Sharon filed a suit against the University of Pittsburgh in 1973 on the basis of sex discrimination and received a temporary injunction but did not prevail. In 1978 she donated the collection of case materials to the Schlesinger Library on the History of Women in America. Together with her husband, Joseph, Sharon owned and operated the Hearts and Flowers florist in Edgewater, MD during the 1990s. Sharon was diagnosed with interstitial pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) in 2000 and survived over 13 years a disease for which the mean survival rate is less than three years. She served as moderator of the web-based IPF support group www.huff-n-puff.net under the screen name “Strayze.” She was a 29-year member of AA. Bright and creative, Sharon took on many hobbies over the years and was an avid gardener and cat lover. Sharon was the beloved wife of Joseph E Johnson; dear mother of Calvin A (Melissa) Johnson and Theodore J Johnson; grandmother of Joseph R Johnson; and sister of Tommy Lynn (Stanley) Miller and Robert H (Carolee) Stanley. Memorial gatherings will be held at the George P. Kalas Funeral Home, 2973 Solomons Island Road, Edgewater, MD on Sunday, November 17 from 2 to 4pm and 6 to 8pm.