Frances Gail Jones

Gail was born on February 19, 1936, in Hilltonia, Georgia, to Laurie Eunice Brunson (maiden Jenkins) of Hilltonia, GA, and George Matthew Brunson of Millhaven, GA. Some of her fondest childhood memories were the simple, joyful days spent at her grandmother Lula Jenkins’ home in Hilltonia. As a teenager in the 1950s, her family moved to Benning Hills in Columbus, Georgia, where they shared many happy holidays and built lasting traditions. One of those cherished traditions began with her mother, Laurie, who prepared Christmas dinner each year with fried chicken cooked in a cast iron skillet, served alongside rice, gravy, fresh vegetables, and a coconut cake for dessert. This tradition lives on today through her daughter Tracy, continuing to bring warmth and connection to family celebrations.

Gail was ahead of her time as a young woman. In 1952, she took her first “real” job as a long-distance toll telephone operator, using her earnings to help fund her college education. She later worked as a secretary and eventually retired from the Georgia Department of Labor after many years of dedicated service.

She found great joy in life’s simple pleasures. Gail treasured long, peaceful days at the beach along Florida’s Gulf Coast, searching for seashells with her family where she displayed crystal bowls of her favorite finds over the years in her home. She also loved summers spent at the family cabin on the backwaters of the Chattahoochee River—days filled with laughter, playing with her children, sunset boat rides with the beloved family dog Benji perched at the bow, and easy cookout dinners shared on the dock or porch. In later years, many happy family get togethers occurred at her children’s respective lake houses, where the traditions of cooking, boating, water skiing, tubing, and enjoying warm, lazy days together as a family with all the grandkids helped make new memories for the younger generations. July 4th was a favorite holiday for all, complete with family barbecues, swimming, more boat rides and the company of those who loved her.

Gail had a lifelong love for nature’s beauty, especially sunsets, sunrises, and the phases of the moon. She was known online for her love of the phases of the moon- and would gift her children a Moon Calendar every Christmas for many years. The sight of a beautiful, stunning full moon or a magnificent sunset will always be a reminder of her love for the beauty of the sky. She created countless treasured memories with her children, including evenings spent watching the sky, searching for shooting stars from the roof of their home on Tifton Drive. She also loved bird watching and was a member of the Georgia Audubon Society, as well the “Historical Rural Churches of Georgia” society. Gail spent years researching the family’s genealogy and was the driving force behind creating a family legacy that dated the Jenkins and Jones family history back to the late 1600’s! Proudly Southern, she spent a decade compiling her children’s family histories into beautiful scrapbooks that will be treasured for generations to come.

Above all, Gail’s greatest joy and purpose in life was her steadfast dedication to her family and to her role as a mother. She was married for decades to Jack E. Jones, with whom she shared a loving life and raised her three surviving children, to whom she was very devoted and involved with until the end of her long, happy life.

She was preceded in death by her husbands, Jack E. Jones and Harold Mann; her infant son, Robert Alan Jones; her parents, Laurie and George Brunson; her grandparents; her beloved maternal Aunt Frankie and her husband, Uncle Tom Randall; and her grandson, Derek Smith.

Gail is survived by her children: Valerie (Jones) Daniels (Steve Daniels), Kenneth E. Jones (April Crumrine Jones), Tracy Gail (Jones) Hill, and her Cousin Tommy Randall. She also leaves behind her seven cherished grandchildren Tyler, Hannah, Mitchell, Holly, Connor, Ayla, and Ian, as well as her six great-grandchildren Caden, Carly, Henry, Owen, Reya and her newest blessing, baby Arnie.

In a memory book she created a decade ago, Gail left a message for her children that perfectly reflects her gentle spirit. When asked how she wished to be remembered, she wrote: “I want my descendants to think of me as their ancestor who loved being exactly where she found herself to be on this earth.” Always grateful for what she was given in life despite being born during the Great Depression, Gail lived a consciously thoughtful life filled with faith in God and gratitude for the many blessings bestowed to her throughout her time on earth.

Gail lived a long and beautiful life, leaving behind a legacy of love, warmth, and treasured memories. Of all the gifts she gave, the greatest were the memories she created with those she loved. She will be deeply missed and forever remembered.

Services will be held at Striffler-Hamby Funeral Home, located at 4071 Macon Road in Columbus, Georgia, on Sunday, April 19, 2026, at 2:00pm.