Kenneth Poe Funeral Services

March 9, 2020

CHARLOTTE – Betty Jones, a resident of Charlotte for the last eight years, graduated to heaven on March 9, 2020, after a short illness.

Betty was born in Dothan, Alabama, the youngest daughter of James Odell and Lutie Adams’ four children. Betty attended Columbia Bible College in Columbia, South Carolina, and graduated from Texas Christian University in Fort Worth, Texas. She also attended Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas.

On June 28, 1949, she married the Reverend Neal Jones, who says he was drawn instantly to her beauty, deep Southern accent and charm.

Betty’s career as a Real Estate Professional in Northern Virginia was filled with many awards and honors over the course of 30 years. Her uncanny knack for matching people with homes contributed to her success as a business professional in the competitive real estate market of suburban Washington.

Betty also had a career as the wife of a pastor and, with her gift of hospitality, she was instrumental in turning congregations into communities. Kind and gracious, congregants sought her counsel and guidance. Betty and Neal spent 70 years sharing God’s love at nearly a dozen churches across Texas and Virginia. Everyone who knew them, knew they were inseparable, and both were beloved. Each time Neal heard God calling him to a new church, congregants would tell him, “We’re sorry you’re leaving, but can you leave your wife here?”

As a mother and grandmother (aka “Guysie” to the grandkids), she was deeply loved. The Jones house was the one all the neighborhood kids flocked to. But she had rules.The four children weren’t allowed in the living room unless it was to practice piano, with shoes off, of course. Sundays in the Jones home were rich in tradition: Church, Betty’s roast, rice and gravy, watching football and dozing off, until it was time for evening worship.

On her last day, her family and loved ones, including Mr. Snuggles (her rescue dog) gathered around her bed at The Cypress of Charlotte, where she lived with her husband, Rev Neal Jones. In the final moments as the Lord called her home, two of her granddaughters held each of Guysie’s hands and sang Softly and Tenderly. She was 94.

Could there be a legacy greater than this? Betty Jones gave a lifetime of love to a world in need. And she saved enough love for her husband and their family, until, as her granddaughters sang at the bedside, it was time for the weary to come home.

Betty is survived by her husband, Neal Thomas Jones; four children – Neal T. Jones Jr. and his wife, Virginia “Ginny”, of Austin, Texas., Elizabeth “Betsy” McElmurray and her husband, Stephen, of Louisville, Kentucky., Jeffery Jones and his wife, Candyce “Candy”, of Austin, Texas., and Caroline Ford and her husband, Kevin, of Charlotte; 13 grandchildren; and seven great-grandchildren.

A gift in Betty’s memory can be made to the Neal and Betty Jones Mentoring Fund at Leighton Ford Ministries, 4029 Dove’s Roost Court, Charlotte, N.C. 28211 or a charity of your choice.

The family is grateful for the love and care shown by Dr. Lisa Nanovic, Hospice & Palliative Care Charlotte Region, and the caring staff of Stewart Center and every team member at The Cypress.

Visitation and a service to celebrate her life is pending the duration and outcome of the coronavirus and its impact on travel and accommodations. Her husband, Neal Jones, plans to preside at her memorial service.

Arrangements are in the care of Kenneth W. Poe Funeral & Cremation Service, 1321 Berkeley Ave., Charlotte, N.C. 28204; (704) 641-7606. Online condolences can be shared at www.kennethpoeservices.com.