This week's sister spotlight:
Meet Janell Johnson
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| A warm quilt for a warm heart. |
“California Girls”
Oranges. Sunny skies. Gorgeous beaches. Mickey Mouse. Janell
Johnson. All awesome things that come from Southern California. Born on June 17
in Longbeach, this 5’7” beauty with an awesome sense of humour grew up in
Anaheim from the age of five years, the youngest of five children. But not just
the youngest. No. Janell is the baby of her family to four older brothers, the
next oldest eight years older and the oldest brother 17 years her senior. (Having
all older brothers explains why she is phenomenal at giving advice about guys. And
is very funny. Just sayin’!) Janell
spent a couple of years at Fullerton Junior College before she packed up for
BYU, joined by her parents who decided to move with her and retire here in Utah
Valley, too. Janell liked it here so much she decided to stay after graduation
(with the view of the valley from their house, you’d want to stay, too!)
Music Girl . . . ahem, Man. Music Man.
A closet Karaoke singer (or not so closet among those who
know her well), things happen when you let Janell near a mic. Allow me to
explain using the simple equation below:
Janell + mic = Karaoke.
She may not listen much to the radio, but oh, karaoke will
happen. . . for Janell, this is an important part of “party time!” So get ready
to leave your singing fears at the door, because if you are with Janell at a
party, get ready to get your “sing” on.
This love of music goes way way back to Janell’s childhood.
And we have her mom, Julene, to thank for that. Janell’s mom had a children’s
music singing group that she worked with and Janell got her start there.
Already at 3 years of age, she had her first solo performance singing a verse
from “I am a Child of God” after which the ward choir joined in to sing with
her. Janell’s performances continued as she participated in stake musicals and
plays, including The Music Man, and
she began taking voice lessons at 10 years of age.
Her aspiration to perform met with some bumps in the road
along the way. Most local playhouses had practices (and performances) on
Sundays, and since Janell didn’t want to go down that path, it closed many
opportunities. Until they found a playhouse owned by some local members of the
LDS church. Janell got her break when she won the role of understudy to Teyve
in Fiddler on the Roof, an
opportunity she was excited about because it meant the possibility of
performing on the public stage.
The Miracle of Singing
Janell continued her voice lessons until her accident at 14.
When she got out of hospital, her diligent voice teacher visited her to give
her voice lessons which she continued to do until Janell started at Fullerton
College where she studied voice under the faculty there. Now singing may not
seem so extraordinary; many people sing, some better than others. But for
Janell, it’s no small miracle.
After her accident, Janell had to learn how to even breathe
to function in daily life. The breathing involved in singing was pretty much
out of the question, at least medically. Yet Janell defied the odds.
A lyric soprano, Janell didn’t just learn how
to overcome the obstacles to be able to sing. Indeed, she went on to earn a
Bachelor of Music in Vocal Performance at BYU, a difficult and competitive
program for those who haven’t endured the sort of ordeal and physical obstacles
Janell has come through. Moreover, Janell was a member of BYU choirs, including
both the Women’s Chorus and the Concert Choir. Following graduation with her
masters, continued singing with the BYU Alumni Choir for a few years as well as
the Utah Baroque Ensemble. She continues to give voice lessons (yes, she also teaches voice), though as her busy
schedule allows as she tries to strike a balance in her life.
Choir Director Extraordinaire
If you ask Janell what her favourite calling is, she’d tell
you directing the ward choir. Janell served so faithfully in this calling and
brought much lovely music to ward meetings. This was no easy task. Janell,
shared her experiences on this calling in an article she wrote which was published
in the September 2015 Ensign entitled
“Fragile Instruments Played with Power.”(Click here to read Janell’s story
about her calling: https://www.lds.org/ensign/2015/09/fragile-instruments-played-with-power?lang=eng)
Hers is a story of how the Lord can strengthen his children to accomplish things
they did not previously believe themselves capable of doing. I invite you to read the article in its
entirety (it’s a powerful read, not a long one!), but I do share the following excerpt:
“Over the course of my calling
and as further evidence of God’s mercy in my life, He gave me the strength and
energy to conduct the 30-minute rehearsals. Throughout my experience as ward
choir director I saw the Lord make up the difference for what I lack. Doctrine and Covenants
64:34 says,
‘The Lord requireth the heart and a willing mind.’ Those are two things I can
offer Him.”
Janell
is living proof of acknowledging the Lord’s hand in one’s life and being
willing to accept His will and direction even when the task seems impossible. I
feel blessed to be able to see these things in Janell’s life and watch miracles
unfold. Her life is a testament of the Lord’s tender mercies.
An MP What?
As soon as she completed her Bachelors degree, Janell went
on to earn an MPA, a Masters of Public Administration. As much as she loved
giving voice lessons, she also knew she needed consistent fulltime work,
something voice lessons couldn’t guarantee. Coupled with her desire to help
people and knowing what the field entailed thanks to a brother who also had an
MPA, she enrolled in the program in the Human Resource track. Her brother
jested that you just had to make people happy and learn to make coffee. Seeing
that she hasn’t quite mastered the latter requirement, it’s a good thing she
works at BYU where that’s not part of the duties.
Building a Stellar CV Already in Grad School
Throughout her two years in the MPA program, Janell juggled
the demands of school with part-time jobs. Not only did she teach voice
lessons, but she also worked for a while in property management and also for a
while in HR at BYU helping with the implementation of the HR software,
PeopleSoft (though not all three at the same time). Janell also served as a
graduate TA in stats during her MPA. From this experience stemmed an
opportunity to collaborate on a publication with her advisor. In the aftermath
of layoff of a large number of employees at a local hospital, her advisor had
collected and analyzed data using a satisfaction survey. Janell then took the
data and worked her tail off to write the data up as “The Effects of
Organizational Change on Hospital Employees,” which article culminated in a
very rare occurrence: the article was accepted by the journal The Health Care Manager without any
revisions. Check out a link to the article here:
Life in the ASB
Today Janell works on Special Projects for the Executive
Director of Student Academic and Advisement Services. As part of her job, she
does research into the issues under review and then gets to write up reports
with recommendations. In short, Janell gets to write research papers on an
ongoing basis. To help support Janell’s efforts in the research and writing
her job entails, she has joined a writing group with faculty in the College of
Humanities. Let’s just say this got started as a creative way of fulfilling
visiting teaching.
Kindness Goes a Long Way
Although understandably Janell’s accident counts as the most
significant event in her life, it is not something that she dwells on. In
seeing how good people have been to her, it makes her want to be all the more helpful
to other people. She will tell you that it has opened her eyes to what a
difference even little things can make in someone’s life and has allowed her to
better understand why people are the way they are by becoming more aware of who
they really are.
Have Dreams. Seize Opportunities. Believe in Others. Believe in Yourself.
So what inspires Janell? The answer is pretty simple: She
loves a good challenge and she loves a good goal. Why? Easy. Because she
doesn’t want to be stagnant or plateau. Quite the contrary. She wants to
improve. Here’s how she sees it. When Heavenly Father gives her opportunities,
then she wants to make sure she makes the most of each and every one of those opportunities.
Life has taught her that a person can come from any situation and can
accomplish what others might not think that they are capable of all because with the
help of people believing in them they can rise to the occasion and potential. She
loves that.
In Janell’s own life, the Lord has encircled her with people
who have believed in her and her abilities and were able to see opportunities
she couldn’t always see. Having others believe in you, she has learned,
gives you the strength to move forward. This is why having good friends (and
visiting teachers, too!) is so important. When they believe in us, it shows
they love us and care about us. And that give us the courage to believe in
ourselves.
How Do I Look?
If you ask Janell how she wants others to see her, don’t be
surprised if the first answer you get is this:
A diva!
Just kidding. (If you know Janell’s very funny sense of humour, you know she said this with a glint in her eye and an infectious
laugh.)
But really. She would want to be seen as somebody who loves
and cares about others and is always there for them to help them. And she would
want people to feel safe.
In truth, when Janell revealed these qualities of love, care
and safety, she had not read Heather’s profile yet. That both sisters independently
shared the same desire is striking and not coincidental. It really reflects the
depth of understanding that emerges when we as sisters experience the depths of
care in response to heartbreak either personally or by watching others. This is
what it means to truly develop the qualities that the Saviour exemplified.
An Attitude of Gratitude
Wouldn’t we all wish life had turned out a bit different?
Janell is no different. But she’ll be quick to tell you that Heavenly Father
has given her wonderful blessings, so to second guess Him and wish He had given
her something different would only serve to lessen the gratitude she has for
what the Lord has indeed given. She sums it up like this: How could she trade
the spiritual blessings for other things of less eternal value?!
Bucket List and Other Favs
Now don’t think for a second that Janell is anything short
of a go-getter and adventurer who loves the outdoors. She completed her first
5K two years ago and is eager to do another one. Wanting to do a 5K? Looking
for some fun while you’re at it? Allow me to introduce you to your newest 5K
partner! Here are some other things on Janell’s bucket list:
- She wants to go on a Wave Runner (this is on here as a
shameless plug to find some people for Janell to go with this summer . . . c’mon!
You know you want to go!)
- Triathlon (okay, that’s Laura’s bucket list for Janell)
- More trips to National Parks (if only those park planners
would remember accessibility)
And now for those things she “hearts”. Janell loves:
- Hiking;
- Going down to the lake
- Shopping at the Dollar Store and Nordstroms (can you get any more polar
opposite? ;) . . . AND
Tea Anyone?
Herbal tea. Ya. I said it. Janell loves her herbal tea. It’s really
that simple. For years as a vegetarian who didn’t consume sugar, she sat by as
we ate dessert in front of her. Rude! And then she discovered a totally new
treat: Orange Blossom herbal tea. Now, I’m not going to lie. She was in Nirvana
at Teavana and although she had enjoyed herbal tea in the past, well, let’s
just say she now considers this stuff her own personal dessert. And the
fragrance? Well, it puts our dessert to shame. So if you are ever looking for
fun treats for Janell, a couple of ounces of Orange Blossom will do the trick.
Or a gift card to Teavana. Or just take her to Teavana and enjoy your own
Nirvana taking in the delicious scents of their delicious herbal teas (they’ve
got lots of no-caffeine ones). You won’t regret it! Trust me!
Her Self-Perception is. . . well . . . Canadian
I’m going to let you in on a secret: Janell loves Anne of
Green Gables. That’s not the secret; but this is: Janell imagines herself as .
. . Cordelia. That’s right. Cordelia. So if you don’t understand what that
means, well, I guess you’ll just have to read Anne of Green Gables. If you do
that, you will quickly begin to understand the essence of awesomeness that is
Janell. (Or if you promise to read the books, I’ll give you a cheat sheet to
bring you up to speed: http://www.cordeliacallsitquits.com/about/why-cordelia/)
While We’re Talk about Favourite Books Anyway . . .
Now, she may love Anne Shirley, but Janell’s favourite book
is The Hiding Place by Corrie ten
Boom. Janell loves that Corrie is a real yet ordinary person who did great
things with her life to help other people. When feeling low, Janell picks up
the book and it reminds her of what is important in life. Corrie’s story is unimaginable for us today.
She and her family hid Jews during the Second World War despite the consequences
if they were caught. Which they were. As a result, she and her family ended up
being interned in a concentration camp themselves. Surviving the ordeal, Corrie
had to exercise forgiveness based on this experience but nevertheless
maintained her focus on helping others. As Janell explains, at end of day what
is most important is being willing to be selfless and making meaning in life by
what you do for others. Janell has learned that she is happiest when she can
take herself out of the equation and can focus on others.
And While We’re at it, Janell’s Favourite
Music is . . .
religious music. Indeed, her favourite hymn is “Abide with Me,
Tis Eventide.” For Janell, it’s one of the most worshipful songs. If she wants
to worship on your own, this is her go-to hymn.
And Favourite Spiritual Quote?
Janell’s favourite
spiritual quote comes from President Benson:
“Men and women who turn their lives over to God will discover
that He can make a lot more out of their lives than they can. He will deepen their
joys, expand their vision, quicken their minds, strengthen their muscles, lift
their spirits, multiply their blessings, increase their opportunities, comfort
their souls, raise up friends, and
pour out peace. Whoever will lose his life in the service of God will find
eternal life.” (“Jesus Christ—Gifts and Expectations,” Ensign, Dec.
1988, 4.)
And on that Note
Janell, as you might have guessed, is pretty inspirational.
This is why she’s been invited to speak at different workshops such as Foundations
for Success at LDS Business College where she spoke on “Unleashing your Learning
Potential.” She’ll be speaking at Women’s Conference this spring on the topic
of hope, too.
But you don’t have to wait until then to learn from Janell. As
one of our amazing Sunday School Teachers, you can check out her class right
here in our very own ward! That’s right. Sunday School with Janell is awesome!
