Donald Johnson, 91

Donald Johnson died peacefully on Aug. 12, 2026, after a courageous battle with Parkinson’s Disease. He was 91.
Born in 1935 to Harry LeRoy and Frances Sar Johnson, Don grew up in Red Oak. Following high school, Don attended Iowa State where he studied industrial engineering. After graduating in 1957, Don joined the Square D Company where he worked as a manufacturing engineer for six years. Don also served in the U.S. Army Reserve as an artillery officer. After getting his MBA at the University of Chicago in 1963, Don had a long and varied career. Initially, he worked as a management consultant with Booz, Allen and Hamilton. He then worked for 13 years for the Quaker Oats Company, managing multiple plants across the U.S. In 1980, Don joined Allstate Venture Capital as a Venture Capital Manager. After six years, he co-founded and was the Senior Partner at Batterson, Johnson and Wang, a venture capital firm. He served on the boards of directors of several public and private companies. In retirement, Don loved volunteering as a consultant with the Small Business Development Center at Harper College in Palatine, Ill. Don approached each new role with curiosity and hard work, and he was proud of the teams and businesses he helped build along the way.
Don met Nancy while living in Chicago, and they were married in 1967. Except for a few years when they lived out of state due to Don’s work, Don and Nancy resided in various Chicago suburbs for almost 60 years. Most of that time was spent in Palatine where they raised their two daughters and made many lifelong friends.
Over the years, Don was an active member of several Presbyterian churches in the area, serving multiple terms as an elder or deacon, teaching Sunday school classes, serving on various committees, and singing tenor in the church choirs. Don’s love of singing also led him to join the Chicago Master Singers, where he performed for several years.
Don loved to travel. His favorite family vacations were skiing in the Rockies and visiting National Parks that always seemed to require long car rides. Don and Nancy also enjoyed traveling the world learning about an area’s culture and history. Don spent considerable time tracing his family’s genealogy and was also able to visit the ancestral hometowns of many of his Swedish relatives. Finally, Don loved to cycle and rode several times in RAGBRAI, the annual bike ride across Iowa.
Don was lucky enough to have six grandchildren, and he loved spending time with them. It brought him great joy to celebrate holidays together, passing along many family traditions. And when given the opportunity, he never missed their many school, athletic, music and dance events.
Don was preceded in death by his parents; and his younger sister, Janet Kinney.
Don is survived by his beloved wife, Nancy Johnson, daughter, Jennifer Morris (Kent), and daughter, Dianne Schiltz (Jack). In addition, he was a proud grandfather to six grandchildren, Ashlyn, Kendall and William Morris; and Jack, Ally and Hayley Schiltz.
The family would like to thank the entire staff of the Lutheran Home for the kindness they showed Don and Nancy. Don will be deeply missed.
A Celebration of Life will be held at First Presbyterian Church, 302 N. Dunton Avenue, Arlington Heights on Saturday, Nov. 7.