James Theodore Jones

James T. Jones passed away peacefully at home surrounded by his devoted family on August 4, 2025 at the age of 91.

James was born on January 11, 1934 in Oxford, Pennsylvania, the middle child of Norma and William Jones, and the brother of William, Pearl, Shirley, and Robert. Much of what we will remember about him comes from the stories he told us. In high school he was a star athlete, a celebrated soccer goalie, and admired by all the girls at school, as he liked to frequently recount. He would want us to clarify that his versions of these stories (not Shirley’s) are the definitive ones. 

He joined the US Air Force immediately after high school and served for 26 years, including overseas during the Vietnam War. The stories James told us about his time in the military often sounded way too unbelievable to be true – until the US government declassified a new piece of information and proved he was not exaggerating at all.  One of his most seemingly far-fetched stories now has its own Wikipedia page, titled the “Korean axe murder incident” – which is pretty representative of the tone of most of his military stories.

While serving in Okinawa, James met Setsuko. When they met, they couldn’t even speak each other’s languages, which could be why Setsuko fell in love with him so quickly. She went on to spend 68 years with him as his best friend and wife (and also private chef and housekeeper). After 10 years of it being just the two of them, they had two children, Dean and Kelly. They moved regularly during this time in the military, but his focus was on his family and trying to make sure his children got along, even when they were throwing deadly objects at each other. He eventually became Oji to three grandchildren, Han, Maximillian, and Sarah, giving him an opportunity to tell his stories to a whole new generation – whether they asked to hear them or not.

James was smart, compassionate, and headstrong with a huge heart that had more than enough space for everyone. He was a devoted father, grandfather, brother, and uncle to many (including his favorite niece – you know who you are). His deep warmth, humor, and kindness could be felt in every interaction – even when he was mixing up his grandkids’ names or was spitting vitriol about his family’s beloved Eagles. We will miss his loving presence in our lives, the magic tricks he performed, the jokes he cracked, the stories he told, and the way he made every moment richer by being nothing more or less than himself.

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