Obituary of James Alex Jones

Manchester, Tennessee - James Alex “Grouch” Jones, 80, of Manchester, passed away January 2, 2023 at his residence. He was born September 27, 1942 in Miami, Florida to Hoke Smith Jones and Vera Scoggins Jones. He grew up in Miami playing with his dog Pal, delivering newspapers, playing marbles, riding his bike and enjoying the sunshine. He especially enjoyed the many hours spent with his best friend Ben Hess. He spent summers with his grandparents in south Georgia and had many fond memories of the time spent with his cousins. He graduated from Miami Senior High in 1961. After growing up in Miami and south Georgia, he moved to Nashville, Tennessee to attend David Lipscomb College. While he was there, he met his future wife, Judy Kay Morton. They were married in Manchester, Tennessee on July 31, 1964. He was soon converted, at least partially, to a country boy by his father-in-law, Rayburn Morton. He was affectionately known as Jimmy, Grouch or Jones by all who knew him. He could be quite a prankster as the many stories we've heard over the years confirm. He worked for C. E. Sign company in Nashville then at A.E.D.C as a draftsman for several years. Jimmy then completed his Bachelors and Masters degrees at MTSU and began teaching. He worked for Coffee County Schools at Coffee County Jr. High and later the “new” Coffee County High School as a long time art teacher. He loved teaching art and loved being a mentor to the hundreds of students he knew over his 25 years of teaching. After retiring in 1997, he built a studio where he continued to teach art for several years. He loved working in his shop and building things for his family. He even built things to help his fur babies be comfortable on road trips. He traveled around the world and took great pleasure taking pictures of all the beautiful places he saw. He spent many years working with his daughter and friends on his other hobby, family genealogy. He is survived by his wife, Judy and their two children - Jennifer (John) Dennison of Manchester, and Scott (Danielle) Jones of Murfreesboro, as well as his beloved granddaughter Naomi Jones. He is survived by one brother Wyman Jones of Tullahoma and several nieces and nephews. He is also survived by his special fur baby, Ike. Others who survive him and were very special to him are Ben Hess, Dick Lineberger, Ron Bingham, Sanford McGee, Charles Zeigler, Donnie and Sandra Warren, Rodney Brinkley, his wife Nicole and their daughters, Kaylyn and Karly. Visitation will be Thursday, January 5, 2023 from 10:30am until 1:30pm at Central Funeral Home. Graveside services will take place following visitation at 2:00pm at Farrar Hill Cemetery. Pallbearers will be Rodney Brinkley, Adam Clark, Dan McCarl, Sammy Morton, Kevin Penick and Donnie Warren. Graveside service will be by Billy Bob Carden. We would love it if everyone would remember him in their hearts with a smile and funny story. He loved making people laugh. If you would like to make a donation in lieu of flowers, he would have appreciated them to be made to St. Jude Children’s hospital. If you have a story you would like to share with the family, please email it to jadyjomo@charter.net. Central Funeral Home is honored to serve the Jones family, 931-723-7774, centralfuneralhome.com