Turning grievers into achievers

Connie Johnston has lived in the Costa Mesa area since 1969, when she

packed up her broken-down Lincoln with her five children and left her

husband to start a new life on the West Coast. The 79-year-old has

worked hard to raise her children on her own, and even now that

they’re all grown up, she can’t seem to slow down and accept the life

of a retiree.

Johnston is always out in the community, whether it’s catering

Thanksgiving dinner for 65 or just listening to people who need a

friendly ear. She spends a lot of her time as a volunteer leader for

a widows and widowers support group at the Costa Mesa Senior Center.

The Daily Pilot’s Lindsay Sandham recently caught up with Johnston

to hear about her own trials and tribulations and some of the

exciting work she’s done throughout her life.

How long have you lived in California, and where did you come

from?

I’m from West Virginia. I came here in ‘69, actually. I departed

from my husband and brought my children and came to California for a

new life.

What made you decide to come to this part of California?

I had my aunt here, and I was having some problems, so she wanted

me to come over and counsel me, and I ended up staying.

That must have been pretty tough, moving across the country with

five children by yourself.

Bringing those kids across the desert ... I had a broken-down

Lincoln and my ex-husband was hoping that I would break down on the

way.... It was very hard getting adjusted, but I have wonderful kids

that supported me.

So you just picked up and left your husband one day?

It was on my mind a long time, but it takes a while before you

finally decide to do it.

And he let you take the kids?

They all knew.... I had this huge business I was running with my

draperies, and we did alterations; we made dresses. I had about eight

women working for me.... He had a television shop on the other side

of the store; he had half and I had half. I was sick all the time,

and the doctor told me to start my own business to keep my mind

going. So my husband gave me my own section of the store, and I put

my sewing machine there, and I had a sign in the window. I also put

an ad in the paper, “Have machine, will sew.”

What other kinds of work have you done?

My background is I was a coal miner’s daughter, so you can imagine

the kind of work I did there [West Virginia]. But I did have a sewing

shop back there that I opened up myself.... So when I came to

California ... I also got in the same business, but I worked for

Sears and Robinson’s and bigger stores doing that kind of work --

decorating.... I worked at Orangewood for four years. That was a very

neat job. I was a cook there for 35 kids, and I did a lot of

counseling with these kids because they worked with me in the

kitchen. It was such a fulfilling job.

Did you have any other cooking jobs?

I had a deli on Balboa Island. I did lunches, it was called “Mom’s

For Lunch.” That was a fun job, I did that for about four years.... I

did a lot of catering and all that.... I did a lot of volunteering at

Oasis. We’d make pancake breakfasts once a month. We had as many as

300 people, once a month, first Saturday of every month, so I managed

the kitchen there.

And now you volunteer here at the Costa Mesa Senior Center as a

group leader?

[At Oasis] I had one too, it was called “Life on your own.” I was

a leader there for that.... Here, we changed it to “We don’t grieve,

we achieve.”

Is this a support group?

Yes, it’s a volunteer support group every Wednesday. We do things,

you know, we go out to lunches or whatever. I do all this because it

helps me go through the problems that I had at one time. It’s such

therapy. When I help someone, it’s just like going to a doctor. Just

talking to them is helping me and at the same time, hopefully, that I

help the other person.... I get a lot of calls, and all they want

really is someone to listen to them.

What else do you do to keep yourself occupied?

I cook all the time. I did a catering job Thanksgiving for the

seniors on Jamboree, that church apartment there on Marguerite, you

know, 65 people. I’m trying to slow down a little bit because I’m

just always out visiting people or whatever.