Patricia Ann (Craig) Jones

Sumter, SC ….  Patricia Ann Craig Jones, 89, departed this life on December 24.  She was a much beloved mother, grandmother, wife, and daughter, and a friend to all.

The only daughter of William Marvin Craig and Susan Brunson Craig, she was born during the Great Depression and grew up during World War II.  She learned lessons of great hardship and struggle, but also of strength and kindness.  Her mother had ten brothers and sisters, and her father had four, so Patricia was surrounded by caring relatives who taught her the deep meaning of love. 

As a member of her beloved St. Mark’s Methodist Church, she served as a Sunday school teacher and choir member.  She was active in the Walk to Emmaus community and the Kairos prison ministry.  She was a member of the Sumter Home Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution and loved reenacting history for young children.

She was an avid gardener, and her yard was much admired by her neighbors and friends.  She often said that her first word as a child was “dog” and she had canine companions throughout her life, the last being a tiny Chihuahua named Cashew.  She valued the arts, and enjoyed all manner of music and theatrical performance.

Her adventurous spirit led her to travel extensively, from coast to coast.  She shouted from the top of the World Trade Center, meditated among the redwoods of California, and stood atop peaks in the Rocky Mountains.  Her time spent living in the great state of West Virginia among friends remained a treasured memory to the end.

Her kind spirit extended to many young people in this community.  Many troubled youth knocked on her door seeking help, and she never turned them away.  Some nights the floor of her den was covered with sleeping bags full of teenagers with nowhere else to go.  Those same youth are now adults who call her “grandma”.

Patricia was preceded in death by her parents, her husband Luther E. Jones, Jr., her daughters Susan Dawn Jones and Pamela Jones Kendrick, and her adopted sister Jacqueline Nunnery.  She is survived by her daughters Kimberly J. Linville and Cynthia L. Clark, four grandchildren Charles Craig Belz (Stephanie), Michael Devin Belz (Ashley), Brendan Matthew Kendrick (Hannah), and Kylie Kendrick Baer (Luke), and five great grandchildren Jadyn Belz, Irene Belz, Declan Belz, Olivia Kendrick, and Rocco Baer.  She also leaves a beloved cousin Donna Blanchard and special friends Cathy Crumpler and Kimberly Nicholes.

The visitation will be held on Sunday, December 29, 2024, from 3:00 to 5:00 p.m.  at Bullock Funeral Home, 1190 Wilson Hall Road, Sumter, SC.

The funeral will be held on Monday, December 30, 2024, at 11:00 am at St. Mark’s Methodist Church, 27 Broad Street, Sumter, SC.  There will be a graveside service at Sumter Cemetery immediately following the service.

The Pallbearers will be Craig Belz, Michael Belz, Dennis Gordon, Zack Theisen, John Burchett, and Daniel Kolb.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Alzheimer’s Association Mid-State SC Chapter, P.O. Box 7044, Columbia, SC  29202-7044 or  St. Mark’s Methodist Church, 27 Broad St., Sumter, SC 29150.

Lastly, the family would like to thank the Prisma Tuomey Comfort Care team for their hospice care.  We could not have expected a more dedicated and compassionate group of nurses, aides, and physicians.

You may go to www.bullockfuneralhome.com and sign the family’s guest book.

The family has chosen Bullock Funeral Home for the arrangements.

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