Shelley Marie Jones

Shelley was born in Jerome, Idaho on May 30th, 1963 to Robert Lewin and Alene Sharon (Wilson) Lewin. Her mother later divorced and married Paul L. Jones in 1965 and the family moved to Portland, Oregon.

In 1966 the family purchased the Jones Funny Farm where they would raise Shelley and her five siblings. Shelley’s love for animals and the great outdoors and all it has to offer began at a very young age on that farm. It was her place of peace, adventure, love, and solace. The Jones kids learned life lessons and the value of hard work at an early age as they were all assigned various chores including feeding the calves, mucking the pig pen and chicken coops, gathering eggs, putting the ducks and geese into the barn at night, etc. One of Shelley’s favorite pastimes was riding her horse, Cody, from sunup to sundown. This often involved bringing the cows down from the upper pasture where they would graze during the day. The family farm also included multiple fruit and nut trees along with an extensive garden where they grew most of their own food. Shelley learned her canning, baking, and cooking skills from her Mom. If you ever had the privilege of eating Shelley’s homemade caramel, you would never forget it!

Blackberries! While Shelley was quite allergic to blackberry thorns and their venom…..it never stopped her from picking them on the family farm until after dark. Her arms and legs would be absolutely covered in scratches and punctures. It seems her high pain tolerance allowed her to just keep picking. She also loved rocks, ALL kinds of rocks! Wherever she went, she found beauty in various forms. She loved beachcombing, camping, hiking, bike riding, chanterelle mushroom hunting, and laying in the sun for hours upon hours soaking up as much Vitamin D as possible. The sun warmed her in a way that nothing else could.

Shelley also loved crafts. She enjoyed painting ceramic figurines, coloring, journaling, and making jewelry. When she was attending Portland Community College (PCC) for welding, she made some cool items including a blanket rack out of old horseshoes for the sliding barn door in Karolee’s house.

Shelley attended St. Pius X grade school grades one through eight, Cedar Park middle school for 9th grade, and Sunset high school. She earned her Associates at PCC with certificates in Welding Sciences.

She worked several different jobs throughout her life but found great joy in her last one where she worked as a clean room technician at Columbia Printing & Clean Room in Portland, Oregon.

In 1986 Shelley was blessed with her first child, Sarah Michelle Casselman who was born three months premature. Sarah passed away in September 1988 only three weeks after turning two years old. Shelley’s son Marcus Paul Casselman was born premature and did not survive. These extreme losses weighed heavy on Shelley’s heart all the days of her life. She was also preceded in death by her beloved Dad, Paul L. Jones, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and many friends.

Heaven gained an absolute angel on March 3rd. We will miss her huge, kind heart, infectious laugh, and gentle soul. She never met a stranger and would have given her last penny to anyone in need, and often did. She had an incredible sense of humor, an adventurous spirit, and never lost that childlike twinkle of awe and naivety. To know her was to love her.

Shelley is survived by her precious little dog Buster Jones, Mom Alene Sharon Jones, sisters (Patsy Hess (Lewis), Karolee Macha (Andy), and Paula K. Jones (Carrie), brothers Russell Jones (Donna) and Timothy Jones (Gina). She is also survived by her nieces and nephews (Diana Macha, Mitchell Macha, Ryan Thorpe, Lisa Hess, Melissa Hess, Mandy Hess, Jacob Jones, Ryan Jones, Gianna Jones) and several great nieces and nephews (Kaylee Hasart, Madison Taylor, Cohen Taylor, Brooks Macha, Henley Macha, Cloie Rosas, Alexander Rosas, Mia Rosas, Antonio Palacios Hess, and Khalioni Hess. She has one great, great niece, Evangeline Hasart.

A Catholic funeral Mass will be held on Thursday March 21st, 2024 at St. Pius X Church at 11am. A memorial reception will be held in the Church Hall immediately following the funeral where a slide show presentation of our dear Shelley will be shown. A private family interment will be at Skyline Memorial Gardens in the garden of the Good Shepherd next to Sarah and near her Dad and Grandmother.