September 13, 2004

On Monday, September 6th the Conference of Mayors mourned the loss of a dear friend and longstanding member of the Conference family, Richard C. (Dick) Johnson. Dick was with the Conference family in various incarnations, first as a "Man in Washington" — the signature name for city representatives during the 1970's — working for, among others, then-Mayors Moon Landrieu and Ernest "Dutch" Morial of New Orleans. Most recently, Dick served as Director of Health Programs, overseeing the Conference's twenty-year_old HIV/AIDS program and helping to launch the Breast Cancer Awareness Program.

Dick was born and raised in Boston, where he was proud to have attended the nation's best schools — Boston Latin School and Harvard University. (Dick also pursued university studies at Boston University, Columbia and Stanford Universities.) His career in public service began long before coming to the Conference of Mayors family. During WWII he served in the U.S. Army Infantry with distinction, receiving an ETO campaign medal, one battle star, and a Combat Infantry Badge before receiving an honorable discharge from military service in 1946. Later, he continued his service to his country, as a Foreign Service Officer for the U.S. Department of State from 1954-1967, taking posts in Bonn and Munich, Germany, Teheran and Washington, DC.

In 1978, Dick became a City Representative with the (now-defunct) National Center for Municipal Development in Washington, DC. During his time as a city representative Dick worked closely with the Conference to promote and represent the issues and interests of his cities.

In an age of e-mail and text messaging, Dick was often (if not always) known to write memos and letters in long hand on legal pads. This tendency toward perfection was one trait by which Dick distinguished himself, and one that his peers strove to emulate.

Dick officially joined the Conference staff in 1992, serving as Director of Health Programs until his retirement in 2001. During his time at the Conference, Dick was responsible for initiating the Mayors Campaign against Breast Cancer, which focuses on raising awareness about the importance of early detection and prevention.

As Dick raised awareness about the importance of cancer prevention and education, he was battling his own cancer, to which he succumbed after a long and valiant fight. The family asks that in lieu of flowers, donations be made to the Friends of the Scituate Animal Shelter, P.O. Box 823, Scituate, MA 02066.

He is survived by his wife of 55 years, Eleanor (Casey) Johnson; a son, Carl S. Johnson of Scituate; three sisters, Marie Dame of Middleboro, Betty Johnson and Dorothy Johnson of California; two grandchildren; and several nieces and nephews.