Corella Rawls Johnson, of Gadsden, died Tuesday, February 21, 2006, of cancer. She was 64. She was predeceased by her parents, Francis Collier Rawls and Leila Roberts Rawls, and a niece, Lane Roberts Thorington, all of Montgomery.

Mrs Johnson is survived by her husband of nearly 41 years, Gadsden attorney Roscoe Johnson, and by their daughter, Ashley Nicole Johnson Mason and son-in-law, William Reading Mason, and grandsons, Robert Morris Mason and William Fallon Mason, all of Raleigh, North Carolina.
Mrs Johnson is also survived by her sister, Charlotte Rawls Thorington (Jack, Jr.), and niece Marion Brooke Thorington, Montgomery; and brother, Francis Collier Rawls, Jr. (Pam), Huntsville, nephew, Francis Collier Rawls, III, Madison, and niece Susan Rawls Mullinax, Alabaster.

Corella was born October 8, 1941, in Montgomery. She graduated from Sidney Lanier High School in 1960 and from Auburn University in 1964, where she was a member of Mortar Board and Who’s Who. She held a master’s degree from the University of Alabama. Her social sorority at Auburn was Alpha Gamma Delta, of which she was an alumnae affiliate at Alabama. She held membership in the Auburn and the Alabama Alumni Associations.

Corella was a parishioner and former vestry member and President of Episcopal Church Women at the Episcopal Church of the Holy Comforter in Gadsden. She was active in church ministries all her life and served on the Alabama Diocesan Board of ECW. She remained proud of the Presbyterian heritage to which she was born. She was active at Christ Episcopal Church during her Tuscaloosa residency. She was a faithful supporter of St. Joseph’s On-the-Mountain Episcopal Church in Mentone near her beloved retreat, "Villa Flumen".

Corella was active in many social and charitable organizations. She was an Etowah County Master Gardener and a member and former President of the Gadsden Garden Club. She was the President-Elect of the Junior League of Tuscaloosa when she relocated to Gadsden in 1981 and she remained a sustaining member of JLT until her death. She was a Patron of the Gadsden Cultural Arts Foundation and a former member of the Gadsden Country Club, Gadsden Antiquarians, and various other clubs in Montgomery, Tuscaloosa, and Gadsden. She was a charter member of the Fun Girls in Fort Payne.

Memorial service with Holy Communion for Corella Rawls Johnson will be held at Holy Comforter in Gadsden at 11:00 AM on Saturday, February 25, 2006. The Rev. James E. Elliott, Jr., Rector, celebrant, assisted by The Reverend Dr. David W. Crippen, Rector of St. Joseph’s, Mentone. Visitation will precede and follow the service, in the Great Hall of the church.

The family requests no flowers.

Gifts in memory of Corella may be made to:

Episcopal Church of the Holy Comforter
156 South 9th Street
Gadsden AL 35901

St. Joseph’s On-the-Mountain Episcopal Church
P.O. Box 161
Mentone AL 35984-0161

Big Oak Ranch
5265 Jake Mintz Road
Southside AL 35905

Collier-Butler, Gadsden, provided cremation and arrangements, with remains interred privately.

Publication Date: 02/22/2006