Obituary
Marvin Tod Johnson
Kay Kay Koose (Little Hawk)
Anini Kappi Mosaid Aking (Man Who Walks The Earth)
October 1969 to June 20, 2021
It is with great sadness and heavy hearts that we announce the sudden passing of our beloved Marvin at the age of 51 years old in his home in Calgary, Alberta on June 20, 2021. Mourning his loss are his wife Kim, daughter Jorja, sons Brett and Skylar, siblings Harvey (Lenore), Sharon (Ray), Sandra, Doreen (Larry), David (Marcel), Stepfather Norman, Mother and Father-in-law, Joanne and Randy and numerous nephews, nieces, extended family and a wealth of friends.
Marvin was predeceased by his father Haroldur, his mother Dorothy, his eldest brother Melvin, brother-in-law Albert, nephews Dustin and Shane and his paternal and maternal grandparents and ancestors.
Marvin was equally proud of both his Icelandic and First Nation heritage, but Marvin’s path took him to learn and practice, more so, his First Nation culture as a Fisher River Cree Nation Band Member. We want to acknowledge Marvin’s mother, Dorothy and First Nation ancestors as Residential School Survivors which also greatly impacted Marvin over the course of his life. Marvin was able to overcome many hurdles and achieve many amazing accomplishments.
As a young child Marvin was raised in Riverton and shortly after the passing of his father, he and his mother moved to Victoria Beach where he later relocated to Winnipeg. Marvin attended Elmwood High School where he established many lifelong and loyal friendships. He completed the Building Maintenance Program with Winnipeg Adult Education and once he realized his love for operating heavy equipment and machinery, he completed training at the Heavy Equipment Training Academy of Manitoba.
In a previous relationship, Marvin was blessed with his son, Brett in 2000 and his son, Skylar in 2002 and did his best to maintain his relationship with his sons. In 2004, Marvin met the love of his life, Kim and together they continued to have a relationship with his sons. In 2006 Marvin’s eldest brother, Melvin provided him an opportunity to work with him in Northern British Columbia. Although this was a difficult decision to leave Manitoba, Marvin and Kim welcomed the opportunity to start a new journey in their lives where they spent four years in Dawson Creek, BC; always taking time to travel back to Manitoba to visit their families.
Marvin started out working as a Heavy Equipment Operator and in his spare time, managed his brother’s food truck in Fort Nelson, BC. In 2008, Marvin and Kim were blessed with their daughter, Jorja Wapikwanee who was his shining diamond and up until the day of his passing, shared an incredibly special bond. This year was also a very traumatic year for Marvin as his mother and eldest brother had suddenly passed away and Marvin was in an almost fatal accident and spent over six weeks in the Trauma Unit Hospital in Kamloops, BC.
Upon his recovery, Marvin secured employment with the Northern Lights College in Dawson Creek, BC as a Supervisor of Building Maintenance and taught cultural teachings at the College and spoke at many conferences. The Northern Lights College purchased many of Marvin’s paintings and artwork and they are displayed in their Indigenous Centre. During this time, Marvin purchased an older school bus and reconstructed it into a Food Truck called Double J’s (his menu consisted of Indigenous food).
In 2011, Marvin and his family had an opportunity to relocate for employment to Hinton, Alberta where he started working as a Heavy Equipment Operator and operated his Food Truck as a hobby and for festivals. This flourished and became a huge success and he made this a full-time career.
In 2017, Marvin’s wife, Kim was offered a transfer to Calgary, Alberta and Marvin sold his food truck in hopes to create a larger Food Truck in the city. In the meantime, Marvin went back to work as a Heavy Equipment Operator with plans to develop and open his Food Truck after the Covid-19 pandemic.
In early 2021, Marvin was diagnosed with colon cancer and successfully underwent surgery and was amid chemotherapy treatments when he suddenly passed away. Marvin struggled with constant physical pain and emotional pain due to his accident and family losses; he found peacefulness in painting, making dream catchers, wood projects while putting his own unique style in his artwork, as well as, practicing his spiritual ways of life and culture. Marvin was also known for his culinary skills; never using a recipe and creating his own unique Indigenous/Western dishes. In 2016 Marvin was awarded the best Bannock/Fried Bread maker in a Bannock Cookoff competition he had entered.
Marvin will always be remembered for his devotion, loyalty and love for his family and friends, infectious smile, generosity, creativity, love of music (he started to learn how to play the acoustic guitar in 2020), love for cooking and his overall zest for life. He impacted everyone he encountered and will be deeply missed by all; he is now on a new journey in life.
The Funeral Service and viewing will take place on Saturday July 3, 2021, at 1:30 p.m. at the Riverton Cemetery in Riverton, Manitoba. Kim and Jorja will be meeting up with Gilbart Funeral Home, located at 309 Eveline Street, Selkirk, Manitoba to process to the cemetery. Friends and family that wish to join the procession we will be leaving at 12:00 p.m.
A celebration of life and feast will be held afterwards at Marvin’s sister, Sandra Monkman’s residence in Riverton, Manitoba.
Pallbearers are Harvey Johnson, Kelvin Monkman, Corey Dubois, Kelly Stinson, Kenny Cyr and Brayden Chartrand.
To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Marvin Johnson, please visit our floral store.
Nos plus sincères sympathies à la famille et aux amis de Marvin Johnson October 27 1969 June 20 2021 (age 51)..
Décès pour la Ville: Selkirk, Province: Manitoba