Laurence P. Jones, 95
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Laurence Plummer Jones, 95, of North Adams died Sunday, March 27, 2011, at home after a brief illness.
Born in Dennysville, Maine, on Feb. 27, 1916, the fifth of nine children of Plummer Augustus and Ruth Leighton Jones, he graduated from Dennysville High School in 1934.
Mr. Jones was employed in construction, which brought him to North Adams in 1946 after the death of his first wife, Elizabeth. He retired in 1978 from Petricca Construction Co. as a heavy equipment operator. After his retirement, his love of operating heavy machinery led him to work for George Apkin & Sons until he was 80.
He active in the community and served on the Cemetery Commission under Mayor James F. Cleary. He was known for his positive outlook, his friendly smile and his wonderful stories. He had a special story for everyone he met, always leaving them with a smile on their face and joy in their hearts, said family. Mr. Jones began most every day with breakfast at Linda's Cafe, where he was treated with great love and care by Linda LeFaver and her staff. His daily breakfast outings were made possible with the help of his granddaughter Amanda Jones Hartlage and his friends Tina Toniatti and Eileen Lawson. The family will be forever grateful to them and to all the wonderful friends and neighbors who touched his life in such special and meaningful ways.
Mr. Jones met his beloved wife of 42 years, the late Rose "Rosie" Cirone, on moving to North Adams; they were married July 5, 1947.
He leaves four daughters, Maria "Toni" Diamond and her husband, Bill, and Rosemari Dickinson and her husband, Dennis, all of North Adams, Pamela Morin and her husband, Julius, of Barnstable and Ann Jenkins and her husband, James, of Portland, Maine; two sisters, Roberta Picard and Phyllis Lewis, both of Springvale, Maine; his beloved grandchildren, William Diamond Jr. and his wife, Jennifer, of Gladstone, N.J., Amanda Jones Hartlage of North Adams and Jon Laurence Morin of Brooklyn, N.Y., and cousins, nieces and nephews.
FUNERAL NOTICE — A Liturgy of Christian Burial for Mr. Jones will be celebrated at St. Elizabeth's of Hungary Church at 11 a.m. on Wednesday, March 30. Burial will follow in the family plot at Southview Cemetery.
Calling hours will be 4 to 7 on Tuesday, March 29, at Flynn & Dagnoli-Montagna Home for Funerals, Central Chapels, 74 Marshall St., North Adams. In lieu of flowers, donations in his memory can be made to the Commission of the Blind in care of the funeral home.