Cara Eugenia Jones

Cara Jones, of East Lansing, passed away February 3, 2026, at the age of 84. Born Cara Eugenia Collier on December 19, 1941 in Zebulon, North Carolina. She was the eldest child of the late Mary Iva (Gay) and Clarence Wayne Collier Sr.

Cara was a high school mathematics teacher for 33 years at East Lansing High School. She received her Bachelor of Science degree from East Carolina College, in Greenville, NC in 1963 and a Masters degree from North Carolina State University in Raleigh, NC in 1968. She was a wonderful teacher who inspired her students, and many kept in contact with her years after her retirement. She enjoyed gardening and talking across the fence with neighbors. Cara also took pride in cooking for her family, for events at church, and for many graduate students, postdocs, and scientists who visited or studied with her husband at MSU.

Cara leaves behind many who loved her dearly, including Alan, her devoted husband of 58 years; daughter Mary Beatrix Jones (husband Daniel Walsh) of Auckland, New Zealand; son Floyd Alan Jones (partner David Coronado) of San Antonio, TX; grandchildren Albert, Sadie, and Eowyn Walsh of Auckland, New Zealand; and brother Clarence Wayne Collier, Jr. (wife Carolyn) of Linden, NC.

She was preceded in death by her sisters, Laura Collier Phillips, Gay Collier Creech, and infant sister, Mary Ellen.

A celebration of Cara's life will be held at 2:00 pm Saturday, February 14, 2026, at Okemos Community Church with lunch to follow. The family will receive friends at the church from 1:00 pm until the time of service. Later, a graveside service will be held at Collier's Chapel Church Cemetery in Linden, NC.

Cara asked that any contributions in her memory be made to the Okemos Community Church Endowment Fund (4734 Okemos Rd., Okemos, MI 48864) or as a memorial gift to Sardis Presbyterian Church (4654 Linden Rd., Linden, NC 28356).