Frances Louise Crawford Vickers Johnson Obit

Frances Louise (Crawford) (Vickers) Johnson
Nov 14, 1921 - Aug 13, 2011

Published August 17, 2011

Frances Louise Crawford Vickers Johnson, THE ROCK LADY (11/14/21-8/12/11), age 89, was born in Fairview, Okla., the oldest child of Clara Melissa Woods Crawford and David Earl Crawford.

Frances graduated from high school in Longdale, Okla., in 1928 at the age of 16. She received her AA degree from Northwestern Oklahoma State University in home economics and industrial arts in 1963.

In March 1941, a young sailor named Harley Clark Vickers stole her heart and they married April 19. They had four children: Sandra Gayle Muckinhaupt, Santa Rosa, Calif.; (Jerald) Craig Vickers, Enid, Okla.; Janyce Myrna Vickers, the Andes of Peru, South America; and Denise Michelle Kramer, Petaluma, Calif.

After Harley retired from the Navy in 1956, they returned to Oklahoma, settling in Enid in 1963.

Frances excelled in all that she did. She was the number one Avon salesperson in Illinois; taught kindergarten in Virginia; led Brownie, Girl Scout and Cub Scout troops; and was president of the PTA. She began writing in the 1960s and had articles published in the National Gem and Mineral Society magazine and other publications, including the Enid Morning News. She became a member of American League of Pen Women and was the Oklahoma League president.

Frances and her son, Craig, were a formidable team selling sewing machines during the late 1960s. When Craig joined the Marines, Sears offered Frances a job in the sewing machine department. She excelled, becoming the first female manager of a major Sears division. Upon retiring in 1984, she managed four major divisions.

On Dec. 20, 1975, her husband, Harley, succumbed to a heart attack. She found solace in her work, her family and her rock collecting hobby. Harley and Frances had been members of the Enid Gem and Mineral Society since 1963. Frances became the editor of the club's newsletter, The Hourglass News in 1986 and served until June of this year, producing 166 bulletins. A stone she donated became Oklahoma's contribution to the 50 states brooch currently residing in the Smithsonian Institute, originally presented to the then-first lady Lady Bird Johnson.

Her work studying the formation of selenite crystals of the Great Salt Plains for the U.S. Department of Interior is still used today. Her efforts to save the crystal beds for future generations helped lead to their designation as a protected area where rock hunters can dig for the rare crystals. The Smithsonian holds her contribution of graduated hourglass crystals in their Minerals of the United States.

In early 1982, a new E.G.M.S. member, Gerald Vyvere Johnson, offered to teach Frances silversmithing. They married that November. Together, they began a business selling rock specimens, minerals and jewelry, which became Johnson's Jewelry and Rock Shop. In addition to selling rocks and jewelry, Frances taught jewelry making and design.

Frances is survived by her sister, (Fayona) Clarise Crawford McGinty of Alabama; her four children; eight grandchildren; 12 great-grandchildren; and one great-great-grandchild.

She is preceded in death by her husbands, Harley Clark Vickers and Gerald Vyvere Johnson; her parents; and brothers, Norman Earl Crawford, Dick (Dilmon) Cecil Crawford, (Forest) LaRue Crawford, Woodie Lowell Crawford and Gail Norman Crawford.

When asked what her most special moment was, Frances replied that it was in 1934, when at the age of 12 she accepted Jesus Christ as her Lord and Savior at Orion Baptist Church.

Service will be 1 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 18, 2011, at Ladusau-Evans Funeral Home. A celebration of her life will be led by the Rev. Michael Frisbie. Interment will be in Bethel Cemetery, Fairview, Okla.

(Submitted by family)

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© 2000-2024 Oklahoma Cemeteries