Harry G. “Sonny” Johnson - Spicer-Mullikin Funeral Homes & Crematory

Harry G. “Sonny” Johnson

Harry G. “Sonny” Johnson, age 83, of Middletown, DE, passed away on Sunday, October 18, 2020, surrounded by his loving family. He courageously battled cancer after cancer diagnosis throughout his life, beating most of them until recently.

Born in Odessa, DE in 1937, he was a son of the late Harry and Gertrude (Butler) Johnson, Sr., spending his early years growing up on a farm. Sonny graduated from Newark High School with the class of 1956. After high school, he went to Florida for a brief time and then returned due to his father’s illness. Sonny returned to Delaware to join the construction industry. He was later drafted into the U.S. Army in December 1959. Sonny was honorably discharged in March of 1962 with the rank of an SP4. He then went to work for Wm. B. Cullen Construction Company for 13 years. In April 1975, he entered into a partnership with Barry Baker and formed A-Del Construction Company and he never looked back! Sonny ran the business with his partner for 45 years. In 2014, Sonny and his partner received the First State Highway Hall of Fame. He will be forever grateful to all his superintendents, foremen, employees, subcontractors, suppliers and friends who helped him along the way to make A-Del successful throughout the years. Sonny passionately said there were two lessons he learned along the way; 1. One person does all the scheduling and 2. No one ever wanted to rent only a half a bulldozer – yet! Sonny was known for being extremely generous for those who needed it and his wonderful sense of humor.

Sonny enjoyed gardening, astrology and the stock market. In later years, Sonny enjoyed spending winters at his Florida home with Eileen. He loved spending time eating out at his favorite restaurants and enjoying time with his friends and family.

In addition to his parents, Harry was preceded in death by his sister, Dorothy Hough. He is survived by the love his life, Eileen; children, Debbie, Jim (Lisa), Chris (Mary) and Lynn (Mitch); sister, Barbara Anderson; several nieces, nephews and grandchildren. He was especially fond of Drew and Kari Matthews and Chris Cullen, Jr., whom he adored.

A special thank you to his care givers, Debbie Cullen and Barbara Anderson, as well as the Hospice Organization of Delaware for taking impeccable care of him.

A visitation for family and friends will be held from 11 am until 1 pm, and again from 4 pm until 6 pm, on Thursday, October 22, 2020, at Spicer-Mullikin Funeral Home, 275 East Main Street, Middletown, DE, where a funeral service will begin at 6 pm. Face masks will be required for all in attendance. Interment will be held privately.

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21 Condolences for Harry G. “Sonny” Johnson

  • Dear Eileen, I am so sorry for your loss! I know that you and Sonny shared many happy years together! Blessings and love to you!

  • What a huge loss. I’ve known Sonny my entire life, he was a special person indeed and touched many, many lives. He will be missed by all. Rest in Peace Sonny

  • Don and I wish to express our sincere sympathy to Eileen and the family. We will truly miss a great friend. Our birthdays will never be the same, as Sonny, Don and I have celebrated together for many years. Heaven has gained an incredible man! Until we meet again!

  • Out thoughts and prayers go out to Eileen and her family. We will dearly miss Sonny.

  • Thank u poppop for being the easiest grandparent to feed….. never once did you have to ask twice about fresh salmon or a juicy steak. I truly love u and will miss u and your jokes. LOVE U POPPOP

  • Sonny was a very special man. Successful, kind and generous. He always had a kind word and smile for everyone he met. Aunt Mabel and (Uncle Billy) loved playing playing cards with you, Eileen and the gang. So many great memories. We are so glad you got to spend so many years with Eileen by your side made so many memories together. A special thanks to Debbie for being Sonny’s healthcare advocate and taking such excellent care of him ALWAYS. We will miss you dearly, Sonny. We are so thankful that you are at peace and that your health has been restored as to return to the loving arms of Heavenly Father. Please say hello and give our loved ones in heaven a big hug.

  • SONNY WAS ONE OF A KINDEST GENTLEMAN ON THIS PLANET. HE WILL BE FOREVER MISSED BY ALL THAT KNEW HIM. SENDING OUR LOVE TO EILEEN AND FAMILY. GAIL & PETE

  • Lynn, Eileen & Family,
    So sorry for your loss. Sonny was a great man!
    Our thoughts and prayers are with you and the family at this difficult time.

    Love to all!

  • Great guy. I knew him since I was 5 years old. He still called me Mikey to this day. Sonny always saw the good in everyone and would help anyone that he could without question. Sonny and Barry have always been there for me and I for them if either of us needed anything. That is hard to find today. We all will miss Sonny for sure but he fought this for a long time. He never gave up and he would tell anyone of us to never give up. Rest in peace my great friend.

  • God bless

  • God have him in holy glory .. a great man, strong and hard-working. blessing

  • My dearest Poppop. You are one of my most favorite people in this world. I will miss you giving me the thumbs up, miss your good hair days and even the bad ones. Florida trips won’t be the same without you. Super Dave and I will truly miss everything about you. Thank you for always taking the best care of all of us, especially Mommom. You will always be a shining light in our eyes. You have my heart Poppop.

    Love always, your little monster.

  • My thoughts and prayers go out to the family. Sonny was a great man and will be truly missed. May He Rest In Eternal Peace!

  • Dear Eileen & Family
    I had the pleasure of knowing Sonny since 1982 when I was young salesman working for the Dryden Oil Company. Sonny was truly one of the nicest men that I knew in the industry and he always treated me with respect and kindness. I

    I am so sorry for your loss but I know God was waiting for Sonny with open arms. It was a life well lived.

    May he rest in eternal peace with the Lord.

    God Bless

  • Sonny was just a great person. He was one of my first commercial banking clients back in 1993 or so. A chance meeting at a law firm where I had no idea of the topic or agenda. Just meet Sonny and his partner, Barry. We had a great meeting and a great start for a banking relationship with A-Del. Sonny and I always met at some coffee shop. He loved his coffee. He was such an enjoyable person. He was always interested in what I was thinking about. We lost touch over the last 10 years but his memory lives on. He will be missed. One of Delaware’s finest contractors and finest person.

  • What a wonderful man, I am extremely grateful to have known him and worked for him! You will be greatly missed. Condolences to his family.

  • One of the best person I have ever met. Thank you for all you have done for me and my family. Really miss you.

  • Dear Sonny – You’ll be missed. We’ll miss seeing a 6-hour old cup of cold coffee – that you were saving until after getting off the loader. We’ll miss the kindness shown to everyone. We’ll miss the generosity freely given to each person you met. We’ll miss your insight into astrology – who knew that a “Tauras” could be stubborn. We’ll miss conversations on how to move dirt, how to lay pipe, or how to recognize talent. We’ll miss your pride in honest hard-work (that 980-loader ran out of fuel each night well before you were done with it). We’ll miss your sharp-mind and an incredible knack to remember the name of every person you met. We’ll miss your love of America and willingness to serve in times of need. We’ll miss your patience and level-headed calm – even when the storm of those around you were less so. You always had a smile and you were a ‘hero’ to many. You will be greatly missed my friend. Rest in Peace

  • Rest in peace boss

  • So sorry to hear. I met Sonny at an early age. I watched him dig a hole, balled up an old 48 Chevy and buried in my former neighbor’s back yard. They hit when driving from pins Loveyou Sunny

  • I am so sorry to hear of Sonny passing. I worked for him for over 5 years as well as being his cousin, and NEVER heard a bad word about this man. I wondered all the time how & were he was so we could catch up and joke with each other like we did. May you rest in peace Sonny. You were a GREAT man & will be missed by all…