Wendy Radke Jones

Wendy Radke Jones, 74, of Bellevue, Washington, passed away on Wednesday, November 26, 2025, at a local memory care center. Wendy was born on April 17, 1951, in Boise, Idaho, at the Salvation Army Hospital. She was welcomed into the world through adoption and brought home to her delighted parents, Walt and Selma Radke. She grew up in a loving home and enjoyed close relationships with her extended Radke and Schick families, strengthened through the long-standing tradition of family reunions often held at Bear Lake.

Wendy was raised in Idaho and developed an early love of music, playing both the piano and the cello. She was active in 4-H and in the youth programs of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. She graduated from Emmett High School and later attended Brigham Young University, earning a degree in dietetics that prepared her for an internship at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. Her years in Boston were full of adventure, new experiences, and dear friends. Most importantly, it was there she met the love of her life, Roger Jones. They were sealed for time and all eternity in the Manti Utah Temple.

After Roger completed graduate school, the couple settled in Bellevue, Washington, where they raised their three children. Wendy felt privileged to be a full-time mother and devoted herself to creating a warm and welcoming home. She worked hard to make a modest budget stretch in the early years and found joy in nurturing a home built on faith, learning, music, and laughter.

Her life revolved around her family. Wendy spent countless hours supporting her children’s activities, driving them all around Seattle for orchestra rehearsals, swim meets, and everything in between. She loved teenagers and served faithfully for many years as a Young Women leader and as a volunteer LDS seminary teacher. She was a steady presence in the lives of many young people and took great joy in their achievements.

Wendy had a gift for making a home feel alive. She was an excellent seamstress who sewed dresses, costumes, and even handmade Cabbage Patch dolls for her daughters. In later years she became well-known for her eye-catching quilts. Many young adults, babies, and friends were wrapped in her comfy quilts or plush hooded towels, and enjoyed her bright pillowcases and themed hot pads. At Christmastime, her English muffin bread and homemade raspberry jam were eagerly anticipated by friends and neighbors. Her minestrone soup and grilled salmon remain family favorites.

After Roger’s unexpected passing in 1999, Wendy faced widowhood with courage and grace. She kept her family close and continued to fill her home with warmth, hospitality, and celebration. She loved to entertain and often hosted family gatherings, dinners, and holiday traditions. In later years she enjoyed water aerobics (making new friends even while feeling a bit silly splashing in the pool) and found joy in gardening, attending the theatre, and travel.

Wendy especially loved the Pacific Coast. Her favorite place to visit was the ocean, whether on her family’s annual stay at the Sandpiper Beach Resort or along the rocky splendor of Oregon’s beaches shared with dear cousins, friends, and family. She cherished campfires on the beach and the familiar laughter of charades played around the fire. Farther from home, her trips to England, France, Spain, Slovakia, and Croatia became treasured memories shared with family and friends.

In every organization she touched--her church, the PTA, her neighborhood association--Wendy brought leadership grounded in compassion. She advocated for others, taught with clarity and care, and organized with purpose. She remained active in civic life, believing deeply in contributing to her community.

The most important things in Wendy’s life were her faith, her family, and her friendships, and these priorities were clearly reflected in the ways she lived her daily life.

A defining blessing of Wendy’s life was her faith in Jesus Christ. As an active member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, she served in many capacities. She loved her ward (congregation) deeply and developed dear friendships that sustained her for decades. She readily dropped everything to bring a meal, offer a ride, or sit with someone who needed company. She faithfully read her scriptures every day and set a beautiful example of prayer and devotion throughout her life. She will be remembered for her faith, her leadership, and her unwavering love for her fellow human beings.

In her later years, Wendy discovered one of the great joys of her life: being a grandmother. She adored her grandchildren, traveling to visit them whenever she could and greeting them with an endless stream of blocks, LEGO bricks, and dolls when they came to visit her. Most of all, she loved reading to them. Visits to Nana’s house always ended with a stack of picture books by the couch, and her grandchildren will forever remember the warmth of her voice and the comfort of those shared stories.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Roger, and by her parents, Walt and Selma Radke. She leaves her children: Jenny Jones Webb of Woodinville, Washington; Julie Jones of Bellevue, Washington; and Steven Jones of Black Diamond, Washington. In addition, she leaves five grandchildren, whom she adored. She is also survived by her brother, Steve Radke, of Meridian, Idaho.

Wendy’s family expresses deep gratitude to those who assisted her at the memory care facility and to the many friends and ward members who supported her during the final years of her life.

The family suggests memorials be sent to the National Alzheimer’s Association at

www.alz.org.

Funeral services will be held at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (10675 NE 20th St, Bellevue, WA 98004) on Thursday, December 11, 2025, at 10 a.m. A viewing at 9 a.m. will precede the service. Interment will follow at Sunset Hills Cemetery in Bellevue, Washington.

The grace of her spirit was evident throughout her life, even amidst the challenges of her final illness. We love you so much, Wendy, and always will.