Jewell Anita Jones

Obituary of Jewell Anita Pickett Jones Mrs. Jewell Anita Jones passed away peacefully at her home on Friday February 3, 2017. Mrs. Jones was the loving wife of the late Samuel N. Jones for 55 years. Mrs. Jones was born on March 29, 1927, in Mesilla Park, New Mexico, the daughter of Dave and Wilhelmina Pickett. She had four older sisters, Maudie Pickett Gowdy, Bessie Pickett Jones, Ruby Pickett Faubus, Roberta Pickett Morgan and one older brother, Neal Pickett. When Mrs. Jones was 4 years old, her family moved from New Mexico to Sweetwater, Oklahoma. Mrs. Jones’ mother passed away when she was 8 years old and she was raised mostly by her older sisters. Her father was a farmer and most of her childhood was spent on an Oklahoma farm, which the family owned free and clear. Even though the depression was beginning by this time, Mrs. Jones regaled her sons with many interesting stories of growing up on the farm and how life was in those days. After a few years, Mrs. Jones said they moved from the farm, into “town,” a house in Elk City, Oklahoma. Mrs. Jones remembered going to Bethel Baptist Church every week with her family. Another family who attended the church were the Jones’. The Jones family had 12 children and were good friends with the Picketts. Mrs. Jones remembered the world was changing in the early 1940s. Several of her family members had moved to Los Angeles to work in the aircraft industry, while Mrs. Jones, her sister Roberta and their father stayed in Oklahoma. Mrs. Jones wasn’t sure if she was going to move to California too, until one day a teenage boy road up to their house on a pinto horse. He told Mr. Pickett that his family needed to move to California. The teenage boy on the horse was her future husband, Samuel Jones. In about 1942, Mrs. Jones moved to Inglewood California, where she lived with her sister, Maudie. Mrs. Jones attended and graduated from Inglewood High School in 1945. In late 1945 or early 1946, Samuel Jones returned from WWII and asked Mrs. Jones to marry him. On February 23, 1946, Jewell Pickett and Samuel Jones were married in Yuma Arizona. After their wedding, Samuel remained in the Navy and they moved around quite a bit. They lived in places like Kaneohe Hawaii, Bremerton Washington and Bethesda Maryland, before settling in San Diego California in 1952. By 1961, Mr. and Mrs. Jones had five sons, Larry, Stan, Doug, Roger and Michael. Mr. and Mrs. Jones were always active in the Southern Baptist Churches in the cities they lived. They were very strong Christians and instilled those values in their sons. In 1961, they began attending a new church in San Diego, East Clairemont Southern Baptist Church, which they were members of for the rest of their lives. Mr. and Mrs. Jones raised five sons during the turbulent 1960s and 1970s. They taught us all strong Christian values and having a good work ethic. Mr. and Mrs. Jones repeatedly told their sons how proud they were of how they turned out. Mr. and Mrs. Jones were able to support each son by paying for our college educations and getting our first homes. After their youngest son, Michael, was in elementary school, Mrs. Jones started a new vocation in addition to running a household. She began working for the San Diego City School District as a clerk and administrative assistant. Mrs. Jones was very detail oriented and loved working with numbers (she called them “figgers” (figures)) and she enjoyed working with the school district for 15 years, until her retirement in 1986. After their retirement, Mr. and Mrs. Jones continued their involvement in the church. They enjoyed attending the services and learning about the Scriptures and our Lord. They also enjoyed the fellowship with the many lifelong friends they made. Mr. and Mrs. Jones both enjoyed playing various domino, card and board games. Mrs. Jones particularly liked to play Scrabble and she was almost unbeatable. Mr. and Mrs. Jones both loved the San Diego Padres, attending many games and watching the rest on television. From the middle 1970s until 2003, their married sons had several children. Mrs. Jones loved being “granny,” and loved being involved in her grandchildren’s lives. Mrs. Jones repeatedly said how proud she was of her children and grandchildren. Mrs. Jones is survived by her 5 sons and 3 daughters in law, Larry and his wife Allison, Stanley, Douglas and his wife Teresa, Roger and his wife, Angela and Michael. Mrs. Jones is survived by her 12 grandchildren, Nathan (and his wife Jessica), Lauran, Max, Erin, Joshua, Alisha (and her husband, Nephi), Zachary, Ryan (and his wife, Kristie), Sean, Roger, Clare and Lucy. Mrs. Jones is also survived by 5 great grandchildren, Taytum, Nolan, Jack, Faith and Bryce. Mrs. Jones is also survived by numerous nephews and nieces and many lifelong friends. Mrs. Jones was quite the character on occasion and said she wanted her headstone to read, “See, I told you I was sick.” She then changed it to, “If you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all.” Mostly, Mrs. Jones would want you to know that she was a Christian and loved her family and friends. She would be wondering, “what all the fuss was about,” because she was now in Heaven with other friends and family and her Lord and Savior.