December 15, 1944 ~ October 11, 2022
Born in: Duncan, Oklahoma
Resided in:
Placentia, California
Eric Doyle Johns left this world on Oct 11, 2022, at the age of 77. Despite the challenges with ALS this past year, he passed peacefully listening to his favorite musicians.
Eric is survived by his wife, Vicki Dubreuil Johns; former wife and mother of his children, Ba Kim Johns; two children, Thai (Jennifer) Johns and Julie (James) Bridgeman; five grandchildren, Andrew, Emma, Sarah, Tyler and Addison; two sisters, Lee Ann (Robert) Kinzer and Barbara (Keith) Arnett; nephew and nieces, Jacob, Kirsten and Robin; stepdaughter, Carrie (Will) Trigg; four step grandchildren, Hayley, Marcus, Lyndsey and Courtney; two step great grandchildren; and many Vietnamese relatives of his former wife, whom he helped immigrate to the US.
As a child, Eric wanted to grow up to be an Indian, but instead he became an Eagle Scout. He graduated from the Pasadena Playhouse College of Theatre Arts with a BFA and University of Indiana with an MBA. He served 2 1/2 years in the US Army, 1 year as a reporter for Star and Stripes and more than 20 years with the US General Accounting Office.
He ran the LA Marathon 5 times, taught Vacation Bible School for 9 summers at the First Christian Church in Torrance, CA, played Strat-O-Matic Baseball for over 30 years winning the championship in 1997, hiked to the top of Half Dome at Yosemite National Park, served as board member and treasurer for Pasadena Playhouse Alumni, assisted special needs children for 11 years in Anaheim City schools, collected vintage Marx playset figures and catalogued them at marxwildwest.com, and participated in community theatre. In 2020, his last performance was as the inspector in the play An Inspector Calls in Westminster, CA.
A graveside service with military honors will be held on Nov. 12, at the Duncan Municipal Cemetery in Duncan, Oklahoma, where he was born and spent many cherished years growing up and visiting as a young adult.
We invite you to make a donation to the ALS Association at als.org or Yosemite Conservancy at Yosemite.org or the ASPCA at aspca.org in his honor, in place of flowers.
The family would like to thank the Veterans Affairs staff, in particular those in Long Beach, for their compassionate care and generous resources.
December 15, 1944 Eric born in Duncan, Oklahoma
May 26, 1950 Graduated from Sacred Heart Kindergarten in Duncan
Easter 1957 Baptized at the Lawton First Christian Church
Summer 1958 Attended first Major League Baseball game, New York Yankees at the Kansas City Athletics
August 1958 Sailed to Italy on the U.S.S. Constitution. Attended school for the next three years at Vicenza American High School
June 15, 1962 Graduated from Yorktown High School, Arlington, Virginia
August 1962 Began college at the University of Richmond, Virginia
March 10, 1964 Performed in first play, Dylan Thomas’ “Under Milkwood,” at the University of Richmond
January 1965 Transferred to the Pasadena Playhouse College of Theatre Arts in California
Summer 1965 Spent first of two summers as summer stock apprentice at the North Shore Music Theater in Beverly, Massachusetts
June 11, 1967 Received B.A. Degree in Theatre Arts from the Pasadena Playhouse
June 15, 1967 Enlisted in Army
May 1968 Arrived in Vietnam, sailing across the Pacific Ocean on the U.S.N.S. Pope. Assigned as a writer/editor with the Public Information Office of the 9th Infantry Division in the Mekong Delta
December 11, 1968 Transferred to the Saigon Bureau of the “Stars and Stripes” newspaper as a news correspondent
February 2, 1970 Son Thai born
March 17, 1970 Hired as a civilian in Vietnam, working as an insurance clerk with military retail stores
February 1971 Purchased first car – a yellow Volkswagen bug — during 3-month trip back to the U.S.
May 1971 Hired as a writer with the military contractor Pacific Architects and Engineers in Vietnam
April 9, 1973 Married Ba Thi Ta
May 21, 1973 Daughter Julie born
September 2, 1973 Performed in last play, Tennessee Williams’ “Desire Under the Elms,” at the American Community Theater in Saigon
December 3, 1973 Returned to the U.S. with family
June 10, 1974 Hired by the Veterans Administration (VA) Regional Office in Indianapolis as a veterans representative to assist military veterans receiving GI bill benefits.
May 7, 1979 Received Masters of Business Administration Degree from Indiana University in Gary, Indiana
April 20, 1980 Hired as a management analyst by the Chicago Regional Office of the U.S. General Accounting Office (GAO)
May 1980 Passed all five parts of the Certified Public Accountant Exam
January 10, 1981 Received Post Baccalaureate Certificate in Accounting at Indiana University in Gary, Indiana
August 22, 1982 Promoted to GS-12 GAO evaluator (Band I full performance)
June 20, 1983 Licensed as Certified Public Accountant
February 17, 1985 Assigned as Training Coordinator in GAO’s Chicago Office
November 10, 1985 Moved to Torrance, California, transferring to GAO’s Los Angeles Office
May 1986 Assigned to the Audit of the Veterans Administration’s FY 1986 Financial Statements, GAO’s second financial statement audit of a major Federal agency.
March 1, 1987 Ran the L.A. marathon, the first of five marathons, all during 1987 and 1988.
November 17, 1991 Became a member of the Torrance First Christian Church
July 1993 Taught Vacation Bible School at Torrance FCC for first of nine years
August 1993 Served as juror on murder trial at the Los Angeles Superior Court in Torrance
July 1994 Made first of many camping trips to Yosemite National Park
April 22, 2000 Married Vicki Lynn Dubreuil
April 3, 2002 Retired
In retirement Eric continued to play Strat-O-Matics, became a collector of Marx playset figures and accessories attending shows around the country and creating a website dedicated to Marx (marxwildwest.com), became a teaching assistant for special needs children, worked at the Disney ticket booth, and travelled around the country by car visiting many relatives and friends.
What a loss. Eric was the consumate nice guy. He was a caring and loyal friend. I’ll miss him.
Good night sweet prince. Flights of angels sing thee to thy rest.
Anne Cheek La Rose
Missing you my friend!
Eric was unique and special person, who loved his family (which included his dogs) and loved and participated hugely in life. Will miss Eric! Hugs and warm fuzzies and condolences to his family and friends!