Cleveland Johnson Jr., community advocate and 'Son of Islip,' dies at 88

Cleveland Johnson Jr., a civic leader, community advocate and former deputy county executive, died Oct. 23 at Huntington Hospital after experiencing kidney failure. He was 88. 

Johnson, a Republican, served in Suffolk County and Islip Town government, including as deputy county executive, Islip Town deputy supervisor, Central Islip school board president, director of community affairs in Islip and regional director of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. He was the first African American to hold several of these positions. 

“My father was fiercely, fiercely committed to making sure that African Americans had an equal say in the political process,” said his son, Cleveland Johnson III. 

Born in Eufaula, Alabama, Johnson moved to the Bronx as a child with his family in the '30s. There, his parents owned a restaurant before relocating to Central Islip around 1950. 

Johnson left Central Islip in 1955 to attend college in Indiana. Upon graduating, he joined the Army Corps of Engineers. After he was discharged, Johnson joined the New York Police Department as a patrolman, a job he held until 1965. He and his wife, the late Joan Johnson, returned to Central Islip where Johnson began his lengthy career in public service and the couple raised four children. 

Islip Town Supervisor Angie Carpenter called Johnson "a pioneer, an inspiration, a role model and a leader." 

"While he has many professional accomplishments, it was his involvement in his local community that truly touched people's lives," Carpenter said. "We are so blessed to call him a treasured 'Son of Islip.'" 

Johnson’s children said their father and mother were fueled by an unquenchable desire to better their community. Johnson was a mentor for many, they said. 

"Having someone like that as my dad, it was awesome and sometimes overwhelming,” said his daughter, Kelly Schaeffer. “My dad and my mom were both incredible people that were just icons in a lot of ways. … We had to share our parents with a lot of people.” 

Johnson often came home late at night after a lengthy day at work. It was those late-night hours where Johnson and Schaeffer, both night owls, would bond over movies and television, frequently Westerns. 

Cleveland Johnson III grew up wanting to be like his father, he recalled. So, as a kindergartner and first grader, he insisted on wearing suits and bow ties to school, just like his dad's daily uniform. 

“I wore it on the playground, in class, I didn’t care,” his son said. “I wanted to look like my dad.” 

Both Cleveland Johnson III and Schaeffer said their father instilled in them responsibility, and perhaps most importantly, a sense of identity and the importance of authenticity. These guiding principles shaped Johnson’s life, Cleveland Johnson III said.

Visitation will be held Nov. 1 and Nov 2. from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. at Chapey & Sons Funeral Home in East Islip. A celebration of life will be held at the funeral home at 12:30 p.m. Nov. 3. 

With Judy Weinberg

By Brinley Hineman

brinley.hineman@newsday.com

Brinley Hineman covers the Town of Hempstead and the City of Long Beach for Newsday. She previously was a reporter in Nashville, Tennessee, and is a West Virginia native.