Yvonne Johnson, who passed away on Wednesday, Dec. 4 at the age of 82, was known for her service to the city – as a Greensboro City Council member and as the city’s first black mayor – however, on Thursday, Dec. 19, it will be the Guilford County Board of Commissioners that honors her life.
At the board’s last meeting of the year, the commissioners will read and adopt a resolution celebrating the life and service of Johnson, who was born in Greensboro in October of 1942.
The resolution states that she “dedicated her life to public service, civil rights, and community leadership.”
Traditionally, when the Board of Commissioners passes a resolution of this sort, surviving family members speak at the meeting about their lost loved one and they are presented with a framed copy of the county’s resolution.
The resolution to be adopted by the board notes that Johnson “grew up in Greensboro during a time of segregation and became an early advocate for civil rights, participating in pivotal movements such as sit-ins and the 1963 March on Washington, even enduring incarceration for her commitment to justice; and… she graduated from Bennett College in 1964 and earned a master’s degree in guidance and counseling from North Carolina A&T State University, reflecting her life-long dedication to education and service; and…in 1982, she became the Executive Director of the non-profit organization One Step Further, serving Greensboro’s youth through mediation and court alternative programs, and remained in this role until early 2024.”
In addition to her non-profit work, Johnson jumped onto the city’s political stage in 1993 when she was elected to the Greensboro City Council. She served as a council member for nearly a decade and a half and held the role of Greensboro’s Mayor Pro-Tem from 2001 until 2007.
From 2007 to 2009, Johnson was the mayor of Greensboro and she later served as an at-large member of the council.
The resolution to be adopted speaks of her many contributions to the city and the county, including her role in the establishment of the International Civil Rights Center and Museum, her work with the Greensboro Truth and Reconciliation Commission – which was created to address the 1979 shootings in Greensboro.
The resolution also runs through a long list of awards and honors she received during her life: the Stanley Frank Lifetime Achievement Award from the Greensboro Economic Development Alliance; the African American Woman of Distinction Award from the African American Atelier; the Gandhi, King, Ikeda Award for Peace from Morehouse University; and the Order of the Long Leaf Pine Award from Governor Roy Cooper.
Johnson, who was a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority and a member of the Episcopal Church, served as a board member on the Bennett College Board of Trustees, the United Way, the Girl Scouts of America, the Women’s Resource Center, Malachi House, Triad Sickle Cell Anemia Foundation, Greensboro Housing Coalition, Foster Friends, Sports Dreams, and the Greensboro Arts Council.
Some area residents don’t know this, but Johnson was a tribal member of the Occaneechi Band of the Saponi Nation.
Johnson, who is survived by four children, was preceded in death by her husband Attorney Walter Johnson, Jr. He passed away four years ago.
The county’s resolution states of Johnson, “She leaves an indelible mark on the city of Greensboro, the state of North Carolina, and the broader fight for equality, justice, and opportunity for all, emulating her favorite quote from the late United States Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm: ‘Service is the rent we pay for the privilege of living on this earth.’”
The resolution concludes, “Now, Therefore Be It Resolved that the Guilford County Board of Commissioners do hereby honor the life and legacy of the Honorable Yvonne Jeffries Johnson, acknowledging her extraordinary leadership, compassion, and unwavering commitment to the people of Greensboro and beyond. Her life’s work will continue to inspire future generations to strive for equity, justice, and community service.”
