Longtime Whitley County Board of Education member J.E. Jones passed away Wednesday, Jan. 22, after a long illness.
Jones, 81, served 40 years on the Whitley County Board of Education making him the longest serving Whitley County board member ever and the third-longest serving board member in the state.
The Kentucky School Board Association had planned to honor Jones next month at its annual meeting for his 40 years of school board service.
Jones had a long time history with Whitley County schools having graduated from Pleasant View High School in 1961.
“His willingness to serve our district as a board member for such a long period was proof of his commitment to making our schools the very best they could be. Mr. Jones was driven to serve by his love for the school district and his love for his community. He wanted to make sure that the students of Whitley County, particularly those in the Boston community, were given access to everything they needed to be successful,” the Whitley County School District wrote in a Facebook post.
“His love and concern for people was evident in all that he did. Over the years, his amiable style at board meetings always encouraged a cohesive atmosphere even when there were difficult issues under discussion. The Whitley County School District extends its deepest sympathy to the family during this time. The district, staff and students are better for knowing Mr. Jones and for his decades of work to benefit students and move the school district forward. May his family take comfort in his legacy and the love so many had for him, knowing that his influence will live on in the many lives he touched.”
Jones was instrumental in getting Boston Elementary School completely renovated and expanded in the late 1990s and early 2000s. The renovation included the addition of a gymnasium, which is something the school had never had before.
The school district and the Boston community surprised Jones in February 2002 during halftime of a basketball game when they revealed that the gym had been named the J.E. Jones Gymnasium.
Jones didn’t quite know what to say during his first hour in the gym that night as everybody kept telling him congratulations, but he had no idea why.
“They kept it from me. I didn’t know what was going on here tonight,” Jones said that 2002 night. “People started congratulating me when I came in. I said, ‘What for?’ I didn’t have any idea.”
Jones said the surprise was a pleasant one.
“I had always dreamed of having a new school here with a gym. To have it named after me is just something I can’t express how I feel about really,” Jones said.
Jones was first elected to the board 1985, spent 10 years as chairman of the school board, and served as its long time vice-chairman at the time of his passing.
“I know that you had hoped for many years to have a building like you have,” then Superintendent Lonnie Anderson told the crowd during the 2002 dedication ceremony. “It is something I think you had almost given up a dream for, but J.E. Jones didn’t. Every time he got an opportunity, he was plugging for a school in the Boston Community, and a school with a gymnasium.”
Officials said naming the gym after Jones is very appropriate for a number of reasons.
“When we went to school here, not many of us would have had an opportunity to play sports had it not been for him and Joy driving us back and forth from practice, or to the gym down at Pleasant View,” noted Ruth Osborne, the 2002 PTO president.
Anderson said that one of the first times he saw Jones was when he came down the road to baseball practice.
“It looked like a centipede or something. There were arms and legs sticking out of the vehicle,” Anderson said. “He had a whole baseball team in there. I thought it was his family at first, but he was the coach, and he rounded up all the kids. J.E. has been rounding up kids for as long as I’ve known him, and been doing good things for kids in this community.”
In addition to his work on the school board, Jones was also the revered owner of Jones Market and other businesses, who was recognized as “the heart of his community,” his obituary noted.
“J.E. loved and cherished his family and community, believing there was no greater place on earth than home. Over the years, he impacted countless lives as a coach, seeing coaching as far more than a game – it was an opportunity to inspire and uplift. He had a remarkable ability to see the best in others, becoming a bright light to all who crossed his path,” his obituary read.
“For 40 years, J.E. served on the Whitley County School Board with grit, integrity, and grace. His servant’s heart was evident in every area of his life, and his commitment to investing in people left them better for knowing him.”
Longtime friend Tim Crawford, who also serves as attorney for the Whitley County Board of Education, noted that Jones was simply a “Boston legend.”
“A legend in the Boston community. A legend in the small business community of Southern Whitley County. A legend with kids in the Boston community and a legend in public education. Seldom ever do we encounter such a person who was so loved by everyone whoever met him,” Crawford said.
Jones had been re-elected as the vice-chairman of the Whitley County Board of Education earlier this month.
Funeral services were held Friday at Croley Funeral Home with Rev. Bruce Dixon officiating.
