June 21, 1947 – July 12, 2023 Windermere, Florida Michael Perkins Johnson passed away with his family by his side on Wednesday July 12, 2023, at the age of 77 years. Following a courageous battle with cancer, Michael Perkins Johnson died peacefully at home in Windermere, FL.
He was born on June 21, 1947 in in East St Louis Illinois. He attended Rock Junior High East St. Louis High School, North Carolina Central University and Northwestern University. In 1974 he married Elizabeth Moore], and together they had 2 children, Michael Jr. and Paul. Michael worked as a Human Resources executive at RCA, Martin Marietta (now Lockhead Martin), Amoco, and Williams Companies.
He dedicated himself to living a life marked by impact, faith and courageous values driven leadership. He served the community in numerous positions including as a member of the Board of Trustees for Bethune Cookman University, vice chair for the the Board of Trustees at North Carolina Central University, and chair for the Board of Trustees at Oklahoma State University-Tulsa; board chairman of the Foundation for Tulsa Schools; board member of the Tulsa Community College Foundation, the Tulsa Community Foundation, and the Amoco Foundation. He also has served as chair for the Metropolitan Orlando Urban League Board and as a board member for the Orange County Branch of the NAACP.
Florida’s Governor Bob Graham appointed him to serve on the Orlando Aviation Authority. His numerous awards include the Oklahoma State University Inclusion Leadership Award; the Tulsa Board of Education’s Light Keeper’s Award; the Tulsa Community College Vision Award; the Foundation for Tulsa Schools’ Excellence in Education Award; 100 Black Men of Tulsa Community Service Award; the Oklahoma Jazz Hall of Fame’s Community Excellence Award; the Oklahoma State University Community ICON Award; the Boy Scouts of America Whitney M. Young Award; and the Martin Luther King Commemorative Society’s Keeping the Dream Alive Award – to name a few. He has been a member of Sigma Pi Phi Fraternity since 1982 and served as Sire Archon of Epsilon Iota Boule in Tulsa, Okla. He is also a Life Member of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity.
He will be greatly missed. Michael is survived by his wife, sons, sister, nieces, and nephews.
A funeral service will be held on July 20, 2023 at 11 a.m., at St Luke’s Methodist Church, Orlando FL.