Dede Lawson-Johnston Obituary

Dede Lawson-Johnston PRINCETON, NJ- Dede LAWSON-JOHNSTON passed away peacefully on January 28 after a 70-year love affair with her surviving husband, Peter, and decades of devotion to their family. She was born Dorothy Hammond in Owings Mills, MD to Donald and Molly Hammond and developed a signature mischievous wit at the nearby Garrison Forest School. In 1950, she married Peter, now honorary chairman of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation and chairman of the Harry F. Guggenheim Foundation, and together they extended the Guggenheim family legacy in art and philanthropy. She was a prolific hostess and fund raiser for many causes including the Guggenheim Museum, serving as gala Co-Chair on several occasions, as well as the Princeton Medical Center, New Jersey Neuropsychiatric Institute and Planned Parenthood. She was known for overwhelming generosity and hospitality to legions of family and friends, and especially enjoyed playing tennis, bridge and dancing. She was a member of Pretty Brook Tennis Club, The Colony Club, Edgartown Yacht Club, The Present Day Club, The Contemporary Garden Club, Bedens Brook Club and The Jupiter Island Club. More than anything, she will always be loved and remembered as the supportive and deeply loyal matriarch of a clan that includes four surviving children and their spouses, Wendy and Tom McNeil, Tania and Sam McCleery, Peter and Karen Lawson-Johnston, Mimi and Nat Howe, her sister Mary "Dumpsy" Hackney, more than 20 grandchildren and great-grandchildren, and a lifetime of beloved dogs of every shape, size and demeanor. Her extraordinary life will be celebrated at Christ Memorial Chapel in Hobe Sound, FL on Monday, February 4 at 1:00pm. The family will be wearing pink, in honor of her favorite color. In lieu of flowers, donations will be gratefully accepted by the Garrison Forest School (gfs.org; 300 Garrison Forest Road, Owings Mills, MD 21117). Visit our guestbook at www.legacy.com/obituaries/ charleston