Darrell Keith Jones
Marriages
Hazel Sharon Blair - August 24, 1972
Burial Details
Obituaries
Grand Junction Daily Sentinel page 3D Obituary - November 10, 2019
Darrell Keith Jones June 21, 1942 - November 7, 2019 Darrell Keith Jones of Grand Junction passed away in his home on November 7, 2019, after battling cancer. Darrell was born on June 21, 1942, in Glendive, Montana. On August 24, 1972, he married Hazel Sharon Blair and together they raised two sons and three daughters. He was a Christian. He respected family and loyalty. He was friendly with an easy smile and his family knew him as a kind and loving father, friend and husband. Darrell enjoyed cowboy and western movies. He liked the Broncos and the Rockies, but he LOVED hunting and fishing. He enjoyed a full life of amazing experiences spent in the woods with his sons or on a fishing boat with his son-in-law. Darrell loved fishing in Canada and enjoyed numerous fishing trips that resulted in a fantastic wall hanger that he proudly displayed above his bed. He thoroughly enjoyed his walks with his daughters and eagerly awaited their visits, whether from across town or from across the country. Darrell was a fantastic story teller and had an amazing sense of humor. After moving from Montana to Colorado, you could find Darrell on the tractor and farming his land in Fruita. He enjoyed working hard and would clock many hours on the evenings, weekends or even in the middle of the night baling hay. Darrell could fix anything. He had an engineering mind: with ingenuity there was nothing that couldn’t be fixed or re-purposed. In addition to farming, Darrell worked much of his life at Frontier Airlines. It was at the “Old” Frontier Airlines where he met his lifelong hunting, coffee drinking, and fishing buddies. He cherished those friendships deeply to the very end. Darrell has 12 grandchildren. He was proud of each and every one. His favorite pastime in the past year was playing with his youngest grandchildren, twins Beau and Bella. He took great pride in knowing that the babies’ first real word was “grandpa.” Darrell was a great coach with lots of wins under his belt. He was compassionate and supportive and taught not only sports, but also life-long lessons. He guided many young athletes in both his sons’ and daughters’ sports teams. He never missed a football game, wrestling match, baseball or softball game. Darrell was a great athlete in his own right, earning All-American honors for the undefeated 1960 Montana state champion Dawson County Red Devils football team. Darrell was preceded in death by his father, Clarence Jones; mother, Ruth (Matchette) Jones; great friend and big brother, Donnie Jones, and sister, LaDonna Roesler. Loved ones that will miss Darrell until they meet again are wife, Hazel Jones; sons, Randy Beard and Ron Beard; daughters, Shelly Smith, Christie Mahlum and Vicki Sanger; grandchildren, Casey Smith, Nick Mahlum, Brandon Beard, Brock Sanger, Spencer Rougier, Beau Sanger, Ashley Smith, Hayley Lovett, Jaycey Beard, Shelby Rougier, Jordain Sanger and Bella Sanger, and sisters, Betty Colby, Lynn Balback, and Linda Robson. A public service for Darrell will be held on Saturday, November 16 at 1:00 p.m. at Callahan-Edfast Mortuary in Grand Junction. Viewing will be Friday, November 15, 5 - 7:00 p.m. Darrell will be placed to rest at Elmwood Cemetery in Fruita, Colorado, in a private family service. Darrell Jones, he was one of the good guys.
