Peter and Susan Johnson met at a church social in Springfield, Illinois in 1972, when he was a promising young accountant at Price Waterhouse and she was a secretary at an insurance office. After a whirlwind courtship marked by drive-in movies and picnics by Lake Springfield, they married in June 1974 in a well-attended ceremony at First Baptist Church, with Susan wearing her mother's restored wedding dress and Peter sporting a classic black tuxedo. His colleagues from the firm filled three pews at the ceremony.

The Johnsons settled into a two-story Colonial in the desirable Forest Park neighborhood, where they built a life that balanced Peter's career with Susan's dedication to family and community. While Peter steadily climbed the corporate ladder to become a senior partner, Susan transformed their house into a warm and vibrant home, known throughout the neighborhood for its holiday celebrations and Sunday dinners. Between managing the lives of twins Michael and Matthew (born 1976), Sarah (1978), and Rebecca (1981), she established a popular local book club, taught Sunday school, and served as PTA president, eventually being named the district's Volunteer of the Year in 1985. Her legendary organizational skills kept the household running smoothly through Peter's busy tax seasons, and her chocolate chip cookies became a staple at every school bake sale and church function. Though Peter spent his free time fishing on Lake Springfield in his Boston Whaler, often with clients or the children in tow, Susan found her joy in her award-winning rose garden and in organizing the annual Forest Park Home Tour, which raised thousands for the local children's hospital. Their different passions complemented each other perfectly - his mounted 12-pound bass hung proudly in his wood-paneled office, while her blue ribbons from the Springfield Garden Club decorated the sun room she had designed herself.