GREENSBORO, N.C.. — Family and friends of Greensboro Mayor Yvonne Johnson held a visitation for her Friday at Perry J. Brown Funeral Home. 

Johnson, the first Black mayor to serve in Greensboro, died Dec. 4, surrounded by those she loved. She was 82. 

She served on the Greensboro City Council for more than 20 years.

Johnson was also a decades-long member of National Drifters Inc., an organization of women focused on humanitarian work, and a member of the Alpha Kappa Alpha organization, a historically African-American sorority.

Her daughter Lisa Johnson Tonkins said through this work, over many years, she helped inspire others. 

“She felt like she could make an impact on the local and national level, and, in fact, she did,” Tonkins said. 

“She was the founder of the Greensboro chapter of Drifters, which I’m also a member of, and she was the first and only write-in candidate for national president,” Tonkins said. 

She said her mother's passion for making a difference was sparked as a young person.  

“When she was at Bennett (College), she and some of her classmates participated in the sit-in movements, and she was arrested,” Tonkins said. 

She said a leader at the school stepping in to help Johnson get her homework done shaped Johnson’s path of service. 

“That experience really helped my mother as she progressed forward and tried to be a good public servant,” Tonkins said. 

Johnson worked for more than 40 years helping people get on their feet through work with the nonprofit One Step Further, an agency that provides food, employment, clothing, parent training and other services for those in need.

Program director Iris Daye said Johnson spent her life creating access to resources and opportunities.

“Miss Johnson, one of her core beliefs was that everybody deserves a second chance, and that’s what I saw from her all the time, giving people second chances, making sure she advocated for those disadvantaged,” Daye said. 

Tonkins said she is proud of the long legacy of service Johnson leaves behind. 

“She's been on so many boards and committees, fighting for people that just need help. In fact, a lot of people don’t realize that my mother lived what she talked about, like when people say, help the homeless. She actually invited him into her house,” she said.

A celebration of life will be held at her alma mater of Bennett College at noon Saturday, Dec. 14.