Gary William Johnson

Gary William Johnson (age 78) passed away on January 5th, 2026. Gary was born to Elmer Leroy Johnson and Gladys Alberta Emmart Johnson on April 24th, 1947, who preceded him in death. His brothers Wayne Leroy Johnson, and Robert Charles Johnson also preceded him in death. He is survived by his wife, Sandra Rae Pennington Johnson born to Kent Ray Pennington and Louise Wilburn Pennington who preceded him in death. Gary is the father to Perry Andrew Johnson (Julia) and Benjamin Parker Johnson (Amanda). He was devoted grandfather to both Asher Vance Johnson and Maeve Adaline Johnson.

As a professional Gary served as a federal employee for forty years, four of which he was enlisted in the USAF and thirty-six in the National Park Service (NPS). He graduated from Virginia Tech with a BS in Sociology in 1969 where he would return to achieve a Bachelor of Landscape Architecture in 1976. During his career, Gary worked with and for 56 National Park units. After Gary’s work at the Denver Service Center he returned to the Blue Ridge Parkway (BRP) as Chief of Resource Planning. He developed the Visitor Experience and Resource Protection process which would lay the groundwork for the way the National Park Service preserves and promotes their parks and sites which would be adopted by the entire NPS. While working for the National Park Service he authored countless papers and was a featured speaker on a diverse array of topics pertaining to preservation, planning and resource management. After receiving the Appleman-Judd-Lewis Award (2011) for excellence in cultural resource management, Gary retired on July 30, 2011. In addition, he received the NPS Special Achievement award (1998), and the NPS Performance Award (2006, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011). Upon his retirement Gary stayed active as a consultant and contributed the NPS projects. Prior to his passing he wrote and had published his book entitled “Experiencing the Blue Ridge Parkway as the Sum of its Parts.” This book celebrates one of America’s premiere scenic destinations.

He led an exemplary life filled with purpose and creativity, finding pleasure in woodworking –crafting everything from carved flutes and cherished Christmas toys to thoughtful designs throughout his home—as well as in family, travel, movies, and sports. Personally, Gary was known as a great man with a great sense of humor and entertaining personality. To put is simply Gary was a lot of fun. Gary’s passion for Legos led him to design landscapes and structures. This was allegedly under the banner of “projects for his grandkids.” He had an immense impact on his grandchildren over the course of their time together.

A service to celebrate Gary’s life will be held at 1 PM on Sunday, February 22, 2026, in the Chapel of Anders Rice & Roper Funeral Home with Military Honors provided by the U.S. Air Force. The family will receive friends immediately following the service in the reception room at the funeral home.

We would like to extend our gratitude to the providers and staff of Messino Cancer Center. In addition, a special thank you to Dr. Joshua Baru and Four Seasons nurse aide, Kristen Harrell.

To memorialize Gary W. Johnson, contributions may be made to the Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation via brpfounadtion.org.

Anders Rice & Roper Funeral Home and Cremation Center is honored to serve Gary’s family.