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Mary Louise Jones, 99

Mary Louise Jones, age 99, died Friday, Feb. 15, 2019, with her son, Kelby and daughter, Liane at her bedside. Mary Louise was born on Aug. 23, 1919, in Helena, Mont., to Jacob and Eva Doerr. She was welcomed home by her half-brother, Ivan Nathaniel Staten, who became a lifelong friend and confidant until his death in 2004.

Mary Louise graduated from Helena High School in 1937 and attended college, taking business courses at what is now known as the University of Montana in Missoula.

She was married on June 30, 1940, in Helena, to the love of her life, John Robert Jones, of Great Falls. Mary Louise and Bob were married for nearly 51 years before his death in 1991.

She first worked as a legal stenographer for the State of Montana Livestock Commission. During the turbulent 1960s, she worked as the assistant to the dean in the financial aid office at George Mason College in Fairfax, Va. Her impact on several of her former students was so profound that, 47 years later, they were still in touch writing letters and exchanging Christmas cards.

She is survived by her son, Kelby and Eva Jones of San Rafael, Calif., and his son, Jacob and her daughter, Liane and Craig Hampton of Hayden, Idaho, and their children, Rob, David, Michala and Anna. Mary Louise has two great-granddaughters: Eve and Elizabeth and one great-great-granddaughter, Marissa.

Mary Louise grew up in Helena, and after the war, moved with her husband (who in later years was called Bob) to Billings. Bob found a job with the Bureau of Indian Affairs and they moved to Wapato, Wash., where they purchased a house with her parents. Bob was transferred to Washington D.C., where they lived for nine years. In 1971, he required surgery, which at that time was available in only two locations in the United States. They transferred to Sacramento, Calif., where Bob underwent open-heart surgery at Stanford University, in Palo Alto. Mary Louise lived in Sacramento until she moved 45 miles west to Vacaville to be closer to her adult children and grandchildren. When her daughter and son-in-law relocated to Idaho, Mary Louise joined the grand adventure and moved to Hayden.

She was an accomplished knitter and enjoyed quilting. She was an enthusiastic member of numerous Rose Societies in Sacramento, avidly collecting and growing hundreds of varieties of roses.

Mary Louise worked tirelessly to raise funds and community awareness on how to prevent heart disease through the Golden Empire Chapter of the American Heart Association. She was the president of the Heart Association, and during her tenure regularly participated in the annual Bike-a-Thon to raise funds for heart research.

Love for Mary Louise often brought her family together. Family members from six states will gather in a private event to celebrate their beloved mother, grandmother and aunt. Her final resting place will be at Forestvale Cemetery, in Helena, where her maternal grandparents, parents, husband and brother are buried.

Please visit Mary Louise’s online memorial at www.yatesfuneralhomes.com.