Garner Jones

July 4, 1932 – December 23, 2020

Resident of Jamestown, NC

Born to Paul and Willie May Jones on July 4, 1932, in the middle of the Great Depression, Garner Jones lived a life hallmarked by grit, hard work, and gratitude. The last living child of his parents, Garner passed away peacefully at home on December 23, 2020 at age 88, with his wife, Mary, at his side. He graced the lives of family and friends with his enduring spirit. He was positive, grateful, dogged, playful and above all else, dedicated to the wellbeing of his family.

Garner was a self-made man. He was the first in his family to attend college, and he did so with the help of the G.I. Bill. After serving in the U.S. Navy, he attended Tennessee Tech, and graduated with a degree in electrical engineering. He spent over thirty years working for AT&T, a career he loved and enjoyed. But to Garner, the most important goal in his life was to see each of his four daughters graduate from college, which they did. He said that education was the most important thing in life, and passed that value on to each of his children and their children.

Garner is survived by the love of his life: his wife of 60 years, Mary Jones. They met in New York City at the Roseland Ballroom, and lived in New York, North Dakota, Kwajalein Islands, and New Jersey, before settling in North Carolina for the last 45 years. As a child of the Depression, Garner never stopped being grateful for “home”, and was determined to provide a stable place for his family to grow up in and come back to at any time. In this, he succeeded. Every prom, high school graduation, college graduation, marriage and newest grandchild was celebrated in the home that Garner and Mary bought together in 1975. Its walls contain too many happy memories to count, and it was often full to the brim with everyone piling home for holidays and happy days in between.

Garner is survived by his 4 children, Carol, Sharon, Megan and Julie (a.k.a. “The Jones Girls”), as well as 8 grandchildren: Mary Catherine, J.P., Anna, Mallory, Samantha, Logan, Luke, and Dylan Garner. He hung the stars for his daughters, and then spent his whole life lifting them up so they could reach them. There was no bigger fan of his girls than him, and they spent their whole life knowing how cherished and supported they each were by him.

Due to COVID-19 restrictions, no public funeral will be held. A small celebration of life for family will take place after the pandemic has passed. In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to:

• Big Oak Ranch, which provides a home for children in Gadsden, AL that otherwise would not have one, https://bigoak.org/one-time-donation/;

• The Garner Jones scholarship fund, which will be established at Tennessee Tech University, for first generation college students. https://www.tntech.edu/univadv/giving/online-giving.php (When selecting the Fund at the top of the page, click “Other” and write in The Garner Jones Scholarship Fund). Online condolences may be made at www.haneslineberryfhsedgefield.com.