WESTFIELD, Indiana - USA Archery was honored to present Jane Johnson with Distinguished Judge Recognition at the Outdoor Nationals Welcome Reception tonight. This award is presented to a peer voted and highly deserving judge. Jane has been a certified judge since 1984 and a national judge since the late 1980s. She has twice been the president of the National Archery Association, now USA Archery and judged the 1996 Olympic Games.
Also a Level 4-NTS coach, Jane has dedicated significant time and effort over three decades to growing the sport of archery and educating young archers. In 2009, she was honored by USA Archery with the George Helwig award, named for the founder of the Junior Olympic Archery Development (JOAD) program. Jane additionally served on the National Archery Association Foundation as Treasurer and President, and on the board of the National Archery Hall of Fame. Jane's contributions to the sport also extended to USA Archery's original collegiate program and Jane was the inaugural recipient of the Jane Johnson award for her service as a judge to collegiate archery.
Jane's daughter-in-law Sharon Johnson shared some memories: Jane was a middle school math teacher for many years in Oklahoma City. There, she fell into the role of archery coach when the presiding coach retired in 1980. There was no one to teach archery, and she hated to see it disappear from the school's athletic program. Her only previous exposure to archery had been that her sons, Cullen and Ward, had practiced archery in school. Jane herself was the daughter of a career military family and she went to 13 different schools between kindergarten and 12th grade - archery gave her a sense of belonging that she might not have had otherwise.
Longstanding personal friend who has also made significant contributions to the archery world, Kathleen Stevenson shared: "Jane is a true archery icon who has served the sport and USA Archery for decades. As a Level 4-NTS Coach, Miss Jane certified hundreds of new instructors and coaches as they themselves certified others. As a National Judge, archers always could look forward to seeing Miss Jane and her little wooden step stool and to hearing her latest pun."
Kathleed added: "Her impact was perhaps best seen on Saturday mornings, working with JOAD shooters, Cub Scouts, Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, and 4-H members, numbering in the thousands over the years, using her own special brand of humor and encouragement to give each one a positive start in the sport. Her impact was such that when H&H Shooting Sports, a local range, added a beautiful indoor archery range, they painted a quote from Miss Jane over the range for all to see: "Focus on your goals, one arrow at a time - Jane Johnson."
USA Archery thanks Mrs. Jane Johnson for her decades of service to the sport of archery in so many developmental and support roles. There are thousands of archers, coaches and judges who share her passion for the sport because of her care, generosity, mentorship and dedication.
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