Fridley Resident Helping Raise Funds for Child of Manya Twite Johnson

Deanna Casale of Fridley is collecting silent-auction items and helping spread the word about a fundraiser for the child of a St. Paul woman who prosecutors say died in domestic assault early this month.

Prosecutors in Ramsey County have charged Steven Roger Johnson, 34, with the Jan. 6 murder of his wife, Manya Twite Johnson, 32, at their home in St. Paul, according to the St. Paul Pioneer Press. The victim's son, Oliver, was 17 months old at the time of his mother's death, the newspaper reported.

"It’s just heartbreaking," Casale said Friday. Casale said by email that she has two daughters who knew Manya Twite Johnson through their jobs: one worked with Johnson at Target and the other works at Oliver's daycare.

All three are part of a group organized to help Oliver that is holding a fundraising event March 16, 4–8 p.m., at the New Brighton Community Center, 400 10th St. NW, New Brighton.

You can donate items for the event's silent auction by sending them to Deanna Casale, 4642 Third St. NE, Fridley, MN 55421.

You can also donate online at manyamemorialfund.com, or by mail to the "Manya Memorial Fund" or the "Friends of Oliver Fund" at Wells Fargo Bank, 670 McKnight Road N., St. Paul, MN 55119. 

Related links:

• The Manya Memorial Fund webpage

• Obituary for Manya Jewel (Twite) Johnson

• Manya Twite Johnson Benefit for Oliver event listing at Fridley Patch

News media reports

The St. Paul Pioneer Press has reported on Manya Twite Johnson's violent death and the grisly aftermath that investigators allege:

• St. Paul man convicted of rape at 18 is suspected of killing wife at 34

• Podcast: Reporters discuss Steven Roger Johnson murder case

• Wife trying to leave when husband shot her, sawed up body, charges say

• Slain woman's friends start fund for toddler son

• St. Paul man accused of slaying wife shopped for a better saw to cut up body, police say

City Pages delved into Steven Roger Johnson's 1996 conviction for rape in Coon Rapids: 

• Man who dismembered wife lured 1996 victim with pot