MR. WILLIE LEE JONES

God saw the road was getting rough and the hills were hard to climb. He gently closed the loving eyes and whispered “Peace Be Thine.” The weary hours, the days of pain, the sleepless nights are passed. The ever-patient, worn out frame has found sweet rest at last.

Brother Willie Lee Jones, son of the late Bessie Jones and Matthew Washington, was born on September 29, 1944, in Tallulah, LA. He attended the public schools of Madison Parish, and was a 1963 graduate of Reuben McCall High School. After graduation, he enlisted in the Air Force and was stationed at McCoy Air Force base in Orlando, Florida. He soon met and married the love of his life, Charley Mae Swanigan. They were married in 1966, and in this union, they were blessed with three children.

After being honorably discharged, he returned to his hometown of Tallulah. He went on to work for Union Pacific Railroad, where he retired after 32 years. Brother Jones professed his faith in Jesus Christ and was baptized while in the Air Force. He was a member of the First Colored M.B. Church, under the leadership of his nephew, Rev. Gerald J. Williams. He served in the capacity of ushering, until his health began to fail. He found peace with the Lord, and that was his everyday talk.

He was preceded in death by his parents; his grandmother, Suzana Jones; his mother and father-in-law, Laura and Booker T. Swanigan; his sister, Bertha Washington; his niece, Sokia Young; his sister-in-law, Mother Ethel Williams; and his brother-in-law, Willie Farley.

His life will forever be cherished by: his wife of 54 years, Mrs. Charley Mae Jones; two devoted and loving daughters, Cynthia Jones (Steve) of Tallulah, LA, and Ca’Mirra Jones of Arlington, TX; two sons, Drayton Jones (Thelma) and Darrel Jones, both of Orlando, FL; two sisters, Sinetta Farley of Los Angeles, CA, and Debra Moss (Earl) of Oklahoma City, OK; ten grandchildren, Dardraytus, Drayton, Alexis, Bridgette, Michael, Donald, Kierma, Leonardo, Chucky, and Bailey; thirty-one great-grandchildren; two goddaughters, Eshereka Bogar of Grand Prairie, TX, and Lataka Perkins of Tallulah, LA; one godson, Marquelle Fletcher of Tallulah, LA; three sisters-in-law, Sara Hinton, Cheryl Dorn, and Shelia Wilson (Trinidad), all of Orlando, FL; six brothers-in-law, Bobby Wright (Bessie) of Groveland, FL, James Irvin, Alphonso Swanigan, Quincy Swanigan, and Timothy Swanigan (Carmen), all of Orlando, FL, and Rev. H.J. Williams of Tallulah, LA; and a host of nieces, nephews, other family, and friends.

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