Marjorie Jill Merryweather Johnson FORT LAUDERDALE, FLA.- Jill passed away peacefully at Catholic Hospice Holy Cross in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., on April 22, 2013. After a long a difficult battle, she was called home to be with god. In her final hours she was surrounded by her family and friends. Lingering between two worlds of consciousness, she was able to smile and express emotions when hearing the sounds of her sisters voices and draw a tear as everyone said goodbye. The name Jill is of English origins meaning girl/sweetheart. That is exactly what she was. She was a beautiful lady and truly loved people. She was a fun loving, generous, compassionate person who wanted to be mother to all. The name Marjorie is of Greek origins meaning Pearl. Marjorie Jill means a pearl and sweetheart. She will be sadly missed. Marjorie Jill was the daughter of Marjorie P. Cookingham and Thomas W. Merryweather. She was born in Rhinebeck. She attended Rhinebeck High School, The New York Foundling School, and worked at Vassar Brothers Hospital as a pediatric nurse. Jill continued on to work with The Branford Visiting Nurses Association for 20 years and also worked with The Shoreline Association of Handicapped and Retarded. Jill was Predeceased by her brother Thomas Frank Merryweather of Rhinebeck and sister Sally M. Searles of Holliston Mass. Jill is survived by her husband, Cosmo Johnson, of 23 years; sons, David Burns, John Burns; and daughter-in-law, Mary Philbin Burns. She is also survived by her sisters, Jan Gumienny of Rhinebeck, Jacqueline Lindbloom of Nashua, N.H., Cynthia Lou Gallagher of Anthem Ariz.; sister-in-law, Jean B. Merryweather of Rhinebeck; Goddaughters, Kristen Jill Gallagher of Calif., Alexa Marie Rickert of Cedar Grove, N.J., and Deborah Ann Lapham of Troy, N.Y. She is also survived by several nieces and nephews. She attended St Martins Episcopal Church in Pompano Beach, Fla. Following her wishes Jill's remains will be scattered of the coast of Florida. In lieu of flowers she requested that donations be made to ;(function() { var adKeyValue = 't='; adKeyValue+= escape('clio=STJ'); adKeyValue += escape('&cobrand=dailyfreeman'); adKeyValue += escape('&linktext=St. Jude Children\'s Research Hospital'); adKeyValue += escape('&linkurl=https://shop.stjude.org/GiftCatalog/donation.do?cID=13522&pID=18290&frequency_selected=2&memoryFirstName=Marjorie Jill&memoryLastName=Johnson&sc_cid=ptn1'); adKeyValue += escape('&fn=Marjorie Jill'); adKeyValue += escape('&ln=Johnson'); var adClkUrl = 'http://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?iu=/423686928/prod/obit-aff/obit-standard/clio-inline-1&' + adKeyValue + '&sz=1x1&c=917099172'; var adImpUrl = 'http://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/ad?iu=/423686928/prod/obit-aff/obit-standard/clio-inline-1&' + adKeyValue + '&sz=1x1&c=917099172'; document.write("<a href='" + adClkUrl + "' target=_blank>St. Jude Children\'s Research Hospital<" + 'img' + " src='" + adImpUrl + "' style='width=1px; height=1px; display:inline;' /></a>"); }());.