Christopher “Chris” Harrison Johansson, of Vale, North Carolina. Chris passed away as a result of cardiac arrest at Carolinas Medical Center in Charlotte on the morning of Friday, February 12, 2016, surrounded by his family and friends. He was 64 years old. Chris was born in Greenville, South Carolina, on June 19, 1951. He was the eldest son of Patricia Jo Adams Johansson and Donald Edward Johansson.
He was a licensed Professional Engineer, and taught mechanical engineering at Central Piedmont Community College for twenty-seven years, until his retirement in 2012.
Chris is survived by his wife of 40 years, Victoria Harrison Johansson, and by his mother, Patricia Adams Johansson; siblings Melinda Johansson, Alan Johansson, Charity Johansson, Theresa Johansson, and Joanna Johansson-Tesh.
He will also be immeasurably missed by his many nieces and nephews: his namesake Ann Christopher Johansson, Lucy Johansson, Reed Johansson, Severn Johansson, William Johansson, Devon Hauser, Emily Colvin, Elizabeth Seabolt, Melissa Martinie, Michelle Martinie, Rebecca Martinie, Giulio Santini, Elena Santini, Rachael Wallace-Johansson, and Eli Wallace-Johansson; and by his great-nephew Ashton McEacharn.
Chris distinguished himself, in all the lives he touched, in the ways that matter most: by his kindness, humor, integrity, and greatness of heart.
His generosity with his family, students, and friends is a legacy that will remain in all our hearts for as long as we live. A friend said of him, “Chris was the kind of solid person on whom the world relies, and against whom we check ourselves to see if we’re going in the right direction.”
Special thanks are due to the wonderful paramedics who airlifted him to Carolinas Medical Center, and to the diligent and compassionate doctors and nurses in the Cardiac Intensive Care Unit there.
The family has requested that in lieu of flowers, Chris’s friends and family make donations to the cause that is closest to their hearts.
A memorial service will be held at a date yet to be determined.
Published in Charlotte Observer on Feb. 21, 2016