Ymana Johnson Obituary (1951 - 2023)

Ymana Marie Duncombe Johnson, 72,was mercifully released from this life on December 30, 2023 after a courageous battle with cancer. She was able to pass from this life at her home of 45 years in Roy, Utah under the loving and tender care of her children and the competent team at Applegate HomeCare and Hospice. Ymana was born on May 14, 1951 at Hill Air Force Base, Utah, the second child of Donald William Duncombe and Ymana Amelia Joseph. From a young age, Ymana was spiritually sensitive and had a close personal relationship with her Heavenly Father. When she was eighteen, she was baptized a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and within the next year or so, she met her future husband at an activity at the Ogden lnstitute of Religion at Weber State University. She married James Stephen Johnson on October 8, 1970 in the Salt Lake Temple. They were blessed with six children over the next ten years. She wanted the very best for her children and worked tirelessly to teach them important skills and unlock countless opportunities for them. She was dedicated to giving them what she most valued in life: a relationship with God, a sense of duty and love in the service of others, education, and travel. Most of all, she instilled in them the belief that they had unlimited potential and could do anything they set their minds to (and she was disappointed when they didn't believe that themselves). Ymana encountered many, many difficult trials in her life but had a resiliency that was astonishing. She simply pressed forward, and did the very best she could despite the challenging circumstances. Her philosophy was that the only option was to keep going, no matter what. Her courage in the face of challenges was admirable. She was deliberate about expressing her gratitude including and especially in the final years and months of her life. Ymana was well known for taking people under her wing. Her influence as a mother extended globally. Whether it was neighborhood children who needed a safe haven or a home with a fulltime mom, international students at the university who needed a place to stay during the holidays, foreign exchange students and their families, or extended family members who were having a difficult time, she was generous with everything she had, including her love, home, time, and attention. Once she welcomed them into her family, they were always family to her. She loved to travel to visit her friends all over the world. Ymana was always engaged in a good cause. She contributed to the community in countless ways, including helping in various capacities in the local democratic process, with the Weber County Fair, the Home Builders Association, 4-H, church service, PTA, and a variety of other forms of community service. While rearing her growing family, she re-entered the workplace for a time and loved working at Weber State University in the Admissions and the lnternational Student offices; this also gave her the much-hoped-for opportunity to continue her formal education. Ymana had a life-long love for learning and exhibited an abundance of hope by endlessly procuring the supplies for a variety of pursuits. She was an expert creator and exercised her creative skills in the fiber arts (sewing, knitting, crocheting, etc), jewelry making, cooking, and gardening. The depth and breadth of her talent and knowledge in these and many other areas was exceptional and is difficult to fully convey. She shared her sewing expertise widely in her work at Rea's Fabrics, Coleman Knitting Mills, doing custom projects, and privately teaching her children and grandchildren and many others. Her children and grandchildren carry on her legacy of creative expression. Ymana had a love of the written word and used it as a way of conveying her most tender thoughts and feelings, as well as her testimony. Her spirit has always been driven to seek the Lord. Her earliest experiences showed her the conflict between religion and spirituality. She recognized that we each have an innate knowledge of right and wrong and she always pursued truth, beauty, and goodness and encouraged others around her to do the same. Ymana, at times, seemed irreverent with respect to church culture and tradition, but she was solid in her testimony of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. She was true to her covenants and had deep faith. She didn't care about appearances and simply did what she thought was right. Ymana's influence was wide and won't be forgotten. She will be missed by all who knew her. She is survived by her children: KeeNan Engstrom, Taber (Rebecca) Johnson, Toby (Marie) Johnson, Dandi (Ramon) Olvera, Nash (Heather) Johnson, Mace (Kinsey) Johnson, 31 grandchildren, and her siblings: Donnie Sharp, Earl Duncombe, Raydeen Jaques, Cerya Jacques, Michael Duncombe, and Kent Duncombe. Ymana is preceded in death by her husband, James, her parents, and two brothers, William and LeRoy Duncombe. Funeral services will be held Saturday, January 6, 2024 at 11:00 a.m. Mountain Standard Time at the church building at 5900 South 3100 West in Roy, Utah. A viewing will be held Friday, January 5, 2024 from 5:30 - 8:00 p.m. at Myers Mortuary, 5865 South 1900 West, Roy, Utah, and prior to funeral services at 10:00-10:40 a.m. at the church. lnterment will be in the Roy City Cemetery. Click on this link at the time of service to watch the funeral for Ymana Johnson. https://MyersMortuary.livecontrol.tv/e1aacd12