John "Johnny" Michael Freeman

John “Johnny” Michael Freeman of Ritzville, Wash., died suddenly on Jan. 19, 2022 at the age of 51 while working at his restaurant: Cow Creek Mercantile. Johnny was born on Oct. 28, 1970 in Renton, Wash. to John D. and Marjorie A. Freeman.

Johnny is survived by his three older sisters; Lynn Brown (Ted) of Puyallup, Wash., Debra Hester (Gene) of Fitzgerald, Ga., Cindy Lauman (David) of Tacoma, Wash., ½ brother Mike Carlson of Portland, Ore .; his loving husband Arne, and numerous nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents, niece Emily Elizabeth, nephew John Patrick, brother-in-law, Ted Brown, as well as several aunts, uncles, and cousins.

Johnny graduated from Lindbergh High School in 1989. In 1995, Johnny started a new job at a cable company in Everett, Wash. He met Arne Braaten who worked in a different department. Johnny, the less shy one, asked Arne to go have dinner on Alki Beach. The next day, not wanting to rush things, they decided to make their relationship exclusive. Almost 27 years later, their love for each other only grew stronger.

Throughout his life, Johnny dreamed of one day pursuing his culinary passion on a professional level and to be able to open his own restaurant. On Jan. 1, 2021, Johnny and Arne assumed ownership of Cow Creek Mercantile. They loved running the business and creating connections with the customers that visited. They cared about their employees and thought of them as family. It broke their hearts as things started to get harder. Johnny was very good at hiding his hurt, but devastated by the sudden departure of many he truly thought of as family.

In spite of many hardships throughout his life, Johnny always managed to put others before himself and keep his heart open to those around him. He took joy in bringing smiles to the faces of others through his cooking and baking.

Services to celebrate and remember Johnny's life will be held at 1:00 pm Feb. 12, 2022 at Danekas Funeral Home in Ritzville, Wash. with Rev. Ryo Olson officiating.

To leave online condolences for the Freeman family please visit our website at http://www.danekasfh.com.