What: A memorial rock concert for Greg Johnston by his favorite local band, Jasper.
Where: UNM Student Union Building Atrium.
When: Thursday from noon to 1 p.
m.
Cost: Free and open to the public.
Nothing ever seemed to dampen Greg Johnston's spirits.
If you needed somebody to cheer you up, to give you a helping hand or to check out the latest rock shows with, Johnston - who has worked at the University of New Mexico for the past 20 years - was your man, his friends and family said.
"Greg was the kind of person who was extremely enthusiastic about things," said his friend and co-worker, Tim Sawyer. "We went to a Lou Reed concert recently and everybody was sitting on their hands watching the concert in some state of awe.
Greg was one of maybe only two people who were standing in the aisles dancing. He was un-self conscious."
Johnston, 56, died of cancer at his home in Albuquerque Wednesday night.
He was diagnosed in November, said his wife, Jill Saylor.
"He was too young," Saylor said, staring out her window watching birds feeding on Friday morning. "He was big into music, concerts, art.
He loved going to art museums."
Johnston was also a talented photographer. He had a degree in photography from the Minneapolis College of Art and Design, in the city where he grew up.
Saylor and Johnston moved to Albuquerque from Minneapolis in 1977. They worked a variety of jobs before Johnston found work at UNM.
He first started in 1982 as a medical photographer at Carrie Tingley Hospital, Saylor said.
Later on, he moved to the public affairs office for the Health Sciences Center at the university and then to the public affairs office on main campus, she said.
Outside of work, Johnston liked to photograph buildings at night, when streetlights added unusual colors to the scene. He also liked nature photography and taking pictures of his favorite rock bands like the Grateful Dead, Little Feet, Wilco and the Rolling Stones.
"He always did his photography," Saylor said. "He had so much rock and roll stuff. We thought he had a couple of months and he was going to spend it going through his photographs and archives.
"
Last summer, he participated in a photo exhibit on campus about curanderas, or traditional healers. The exhibit was later taken to Los Alamos for another showing, said Laurie Mellas, who worked with him in the public affairs office.
Mellas said she admired his work, but will always remember him as an optimistic soul who loved life.
"He was such a positive person," Mellas said. "He never said an ill word about anyone. That's such a rare thing to say.
He always brought a positive light to any situation."
She broke down crying at the thought of him dying on Valentines Day.
"He touched so many hearts," Mellas said.
"If he had to go on a certain day it's sort of appropriate we'd remember him each year on Valentines Day."
Although he went fast, Sam Giammo, his former boss at the Health Sciences Center, said Johnston seemed to have gracefully accepted his fate at the end.
"He had a couple ties from the Jerry Garcia tie line," Giammo said of the former leader of the Grateful Dead.
"A couple of months ago he approached me with a bag in his hand. It had a Jerry Garcia tie in it and he said `I want you to have this.' I'm just really touched he wanted me to to have that as a remembrance of him.
"
Johnston remained optimistic throughout the cancer, even up to his last day, Saylor said.
"He was singing along with a song by The Band on Wednesday, the day he died," Saylor said.
As she spoke, a hawk flew down to her bird feeder to pay a visit - something she'd never seen before, she said.
"Oh, my God, a hawk," Saylor said. "That was so cool to see. He would have loved that.
I think that's a sign."
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