James Joseph Johnston, lovingly known as Buddy by his family, passed away Saturday evening, February 28, 2015, at his home in Chaptico, MD, surrounded by his family who loved him. Born in Washington, DC, Jimmy grew up the seventh of sixteen children in Mt. Rainier, MD. He lived in Brentwood, Rockville, and Gaithersburg before moving to Chaptico in 1993.

Jimmy served in the United States Army as a member of the Signal Corp in Germany and finished his service in 1965 at the Pentagon; the same year he met the love of his life, Veronica. They married in April of 1966.

He worked for Safeway as a meat cutter from 1966 to 1970 which is when he became a member of the Sheet Metal Workers Union, Local 100. In 1997, Jimmy opened his own sheet metal fabrication shop, JCJ, Inc., closing its doors in 2005 in a much celebrated retirement.

Jimmy loved strong coffee, working in his yard, eating tomatoes right off the vine, ketchup as a food group, the beach, Thanksgiving bonfires, and spending time with his family. He was an inventive and creative problem solver and enjoyed meeting new people. He had a gift for making any stranger feel like a long lost friend. His grandchildren were a special gift to him and he enjoyed being a kid again with them. For most of his working life, Jimmy set his alarm a half an hour early so that he could enjoy a cup of coffee and write a "Good Morning" love note to his wife.

Preceding James in death are his parents, William and Agnes (Sullivan) Johnston, his sister Dorothy, and his brothers, William, Richard, Paul, and Thomas.

He is survived by the wife he adored, Veronica Lee (Brooke), his daughters, Veronica Lee Johnston (Germantown), Roxann Marie Mejia (Mechanicsville), Theresa Lynn Murnane and husband John Murnane (Walkersville), and Jamie Christy Dawson and husband Mitch Dawson (Brunswick), his son, Luis Mejia (Mechanicsville), his grandchildren, Katharyn, James, Matthew, and Wyatt Mejia (Mechanicsville), his furry children, Corky, Sophia, Namee, and Pyewacket, and his siblings, Helen Williams, Jean Simmons, Robert Johnston, Joseph Johnston, Joanne Murry, Michael Johnston, Alton Johnston, Kathleen Westmoreland, Eileen Hayden, and Frederick Johnston.

Family and friends are invited to James' Life Celebration on Sunday, March 8, 2015 from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at Brinsfield-Echols Funeral Home, P.A., 30195 Three Notch Road, Charlotte Hall, MD 20622. A Service will begin at 1:00 p.m. on Sunday at the funeral home. Interment is private.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to the Humane Society of Calvert County because Jimmy believed that every dog deserved a biscuit. Arrangements provided by Brinsfield-Echols Funeral Home.