Rhoda M. (Brady) Johnson-Doherty of Truro passed away peacefully at home on Tuesday, July 21st, 2020. She was 86.
Born Feb 14, 1934 in Brockton, she was the youngest of 5 children (and a surprise) to the late Henry and Mabel (Perry) Brady. She always considered Valentine’s Day, her special holiday. As a young girl, Rhoda attended parochial school, the nuns leaving quite an impression on her. After parochial school, she attended Brockton High School, graduating in 1952.
She learned secretarial skills at Chandler School for Women in Boston, and used those skills working for Attorney Alphon Carlson and CPA Walter Johnson as their receptionist/clerk in their Bridgewater office. Rhoda and Walter fell in love, and in 1955 on Valentine’s Day (her birthday), they were engaged. They eloped to New York that May.
In the spring of 1956, their son Jeffrey was born and a son Timothy (TJ) followed in May of 1959. Rhoda and Walter raised their family in West Bridgewater until he unexpectedly passed away in 1966. The family spent summers on Cape Cod, first in Falmouth and then in Truro at her sister's house. She and her sons continued spending summers in Truro all their lives.
After Walter’s passing, Rhoda gave up being a stay at home mom and returned to secretarial work. Initially she worked at the West Bridgewater Elementary School. She next was employed as a secretary for the West Bridgewater Water Department, and retired as a civil clerk at the Plymouth County Clerk of Courts office in Brockton.
Upon her retirement in 1998, she moved to Atlanta Georgia and married Jimmy Doherty. Jimmy predeceased her in 2002. Rhoda kept busy in Atlanta by becoming a vocalist for a local band. The band was made up of a group of friends that went to different retirement homes to sing for the residents. They played the hits from years gone by and she always enjoyed playing the “Bugle Boy”. Rhoda enjoyed the camaraderie of her bandmates.
In 2015 Rhoda moved to the Cape. She enjoyed being close to her family and especially found joy in visits from and singing with her 3 year-old great-granddaughter. Rhoda enjoyed golf, reading, sitting at the beach and especially being at Pamet Harbor.
She leaves behind her son Jeffrey W. Johnson, granddaughter Annie Johnson both of Truro, granddaughter Jaclyn Anderson and her husband Ian, great-granddaughter Adeline all of Merrimack NH, nieces and nephews, and friends in Massachusetts and Georgia. She was predeceased by her husbands, Walter C. Johnson, and Jimmy Doherty, and her son Timothy (TJ) Johnson.
A private Funeral Mass and burial will be held in August for the family.