My Momma was my best friend. We were always together. Our Saturday weekend routine involved breakfast out, garage sales, ice cream or sweet tea, shopping at the Mall or Target then hanging out in her beautiful backyard, with all of our pugs. She loved her little pugs like they were children. They loved her back the same! We would drink a pot of coffee, talk about life, kids, pugs and then say our goodbyes around 3 and I would go home. 
     Momma was the sweetest, most loving, giving and kind person. She loved her family with all of her heart and we all loved her back with all of ours. I wish I could have those sweetest of days back again.  Rest peacefully in Heaven Maw Maw Cleta. We all love you, to the moon and back! Give Paw Paw a big kiss from all of us. I love you forever!

I remember when my mom would take Maw to the grocery store on Saturdays. Sometimes I would go along to pick out stuff I wanted to buy for snacks.  Maw and I would walk around the store kicking the floor to make a horrible squeaky sound. It was so funny. We would laugh so hard at Mom because she was so embarrassed.  She would try to get away from us so that people would think she didn't know us. We always caught up to her though! 🤣

Maw was my best friend from the beginning and until the end.   We loved spending time outside together.    Digging for special rocks, watching the ants crawl up trees, picking cherry tomatoes from Paws garden, and swinging as high as a girl could possibly swing.  Reading the Pokey Little Puppy, Peter Rabbit, Mother Goose,  and a million other books before bed.  On Friday nights we’d order Tobins pizza, then climb in bed and  watch the Love Boat, Fantasy Island, and the Johnny Carson show.    I’d wake up to Entenmann’s chocolate iced donuts on Saturday morning.    My favorite night of every year was the night before Thanksgiving.  We’d stay up ALL night cooking and getting the turkey ready for the meal.  I cherish those memories and can still smell her house full of holiday cheer.  I loved getting on the Constitution Trail with her and taking long walks.   We’d get to walking so fast that our hands would bang together and our rings would scratch each other.    And we’d laugh and hold hands for a few seconds until we were back in the groove.   Her hands were always so soft….  As I grew older she always had my back.  Even in my dark days…. She knew what I needed to hear, and gave me solid advice on what to do.   Her door was always open for us.  She’d unlock it every day in hopes of us all stopping by for coffee. She taught me all about beauty and inspired me to start my own business as a jewelry designer and later as a salon owner.    She empowered me day after day to keep going and follow my heart.   She made the best salmon patties and catfish ever, and loved spending time in her kitchen    When she got the pugs, you could count on a little pug hair being in her baked goods (God she loved her pugs, and I just know they greeted her first in Heaven)   My last memory was sharing a ham and cheese sandwich with her at the nursing home.  I stopped eating meat many years ago, but she insisted we share this sandwich ….  So we did.   We said our goodbyes and our I love you’s

When I was in Kindergarten and learning to read, I would grab my bag of books and crawl into bed with Mother to read to her. She would have curlers in her hair and a portable hair dryer on. She would listen to me for about 5 minutes and fall asleep. She looked so peaceful. 
And other times, she would lay on her side and the pillow would cover one eye. She would act like she was asleep, and then open that one eye real big and scare me to death. We would laugh so hard. 
She was always my calm when I was sad especially after the loss of a pet. She knew what perfect words would comfort me. I loved her so very much.  It will be hard without her here, but Heaven got a great old lady!

One of my favorite memories was when my brother and I were real little we'd stay at my grandma's house while my mom, dad, aunt and uncle would go out to eat on a Saturday evening. My brother and I would be on the floor in front of the TV watching Saturday Night Live while my grandma was in a chair behind us laughing her butt off. I'll see you again one day maw and we can watch SNL together.

OBITUARY

Cleta Irene Jones

March 7, 1933 – September 17, 2026

East Lawn Funeral Home & Memorial Gardens

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