Port Orchard, Wash. – It was December of 2006 when Ron Johnson’s life partner called 911. Mr. Johnson had slipped and fallen on ice outside their home and suffered a significant injury. South Kitsap Fire and Rescue, dispatched to the call from its Fircrest Station, was there in minutes.
Mr. Johnson recovered from that injury and was so grateful for the care he received that he bequeathed property to South Kitsap Fire and Rescue to support its operations. Specifically, Mr. Johnson wanted the proceeds from the sale of the property to be used for a new ambulance. The property transfer occurred this week, and it will be sold in accordance with Mr. Johnson’s wishes.
SKFR will purchase a new ambulance, like the one that responded to his home in 2006. However, this unit will be “state of the art” according to Mr. Johnson’s instructions.
“Ron wanted South Kitsap Fire and Rescue to have the most modern medic unit available to save as many lives as possible,” said Robert Roblee, Johnson’s life partner of 50 years. “He wanted to do something that made a difference in people’s lives.”
“We are extremely grateful to Ron and Robert for this generous donation,” said Fire Chief Jeff Faucett. “We will save lives in our community thanks to Ron Johnson’s legacy.”
Ron Johnson’s family has long ties to South Kitsap Fire and Rescue. His parents bought property in the early 1940s on Sedgwick Drive in Southworth just up from the ferry landing. People remember the family farm with donkeys and goats at one corner of the intersection. The only political signs his parents would allow over the years were those supporting fire levies and bonds for South Kitsap Fire and Rescue. Ron graduated in 1961 from South Kitsap High School and his brother, Jerry, served as a volunteer firefighter in the 1970s.
Mr. Roblee and Mr. Johnson met in Seattle in 1970. Mr. Roblee, a native Seattleite, wanted to live a peaceful life in the country. He and Mr. Johnson bought 20 acres in South Kitsap County where they lived for six years, adding emus, alpacas, and one pig to the family farm. After living in Seahurst Washington for 15 years, they returned to Kitsap County in 1992 where they lived until Mr. Johnson’s passing on May 7, 2021.
Ron Johnson’s celebration of life was held July 25, 2021 at Pilgrim Firs. Mr. Roblee gets choked up talking about it. “As a gay couple, we have made South Kitsap our home for many years and I am trying to fulfill his wishes of giving back to the community where he was raised.”
Another legacy? The couple planted thousands of trees in their time together. Mr. Johnson owned Pooles Garden Center in Tacoma and was passionate about landscaping and gardening.
It can take up to two years until delivery of a custom medic unit. South Kitsap Fire and Rescue is planning a ceremony in honor of Ron Johnson when it takes delivery of the apparatus.
“Every life we save with this apparatus is going to be a legacy to Ron Johnson,” said Chief Faucett. “We cannot save lives and property without the support of our community. Ron is a local South Kitsap kid. I know he’s still out there and can hear us when we say ‘thank you for getting ‘er done.’”