Obituaries

Thelma Jo Monk Jones, 95, of Tom Bean, Texas, peacefully passed from this earth and entered heaven to walk its streets of gold on Friday, April 10, 2026, at Texoma Medical Center in Denison, Texas.

Born on April 22, 1930, in Snyder, Oklahoma, Thelma was the beloved daughter of Arry Cross Monk and James Marion Monk. She grew up in the Pilot Grove area of Whitewright, Texas, where she graduated from Whitewright High School in 1945 at the young age of 15 as Salutatorian. Demonstrating her drive and ambition early, she attended business school in Dallas before returning home.

Just days before her 17th birthday, on April 18, 1947, she married the love of her life, Robert Louis Jones. Their marriage was a beautiful and enduring partnership that lasted more than 49 years. Together they built a home filled with love, laughter, and the daily rhythms of family life.

Hard work and an unwavering commitment to her family defined Thelma’s life. She poured her energy into creating a warm, welcoming home where her children and grandchildren always felt safe and cherished. Family members fondly remember her lively get-togethers, where the table groaned with platters of home-cooked food and evenings were filled with endless games of 42, spades, hearts, and hand and foot. She took quiet pride in spoiling her grandchildren with stories from her own childhood and generous helpings of her special desserts.

After Robert’s retirement in 1983, Thelma and Robert continued their active life together, working as gate guards in the oil fields of South Texas, serving as campground superintendents for the Army Corps of Engineers, and volunteering at Texoma Medical Center—always showing the same dedication and strong work ethic that defined them both. Even after Robert’s passing in 1996, Thelma remained a steady anchor for her family.

Thelma had a special gift for making everyone feel at home—whether through a fresh pot of coffee, a bowl of Blue Bell, a listening ear, or wise advice offered with a gentle smile. Through nearly a century of life, spanning the Great Depression and World War II to the rapid technological changes of the modern era, she remained resilient, teaching by quiet example the importance of kindness, faith, and family sticking together no matter what.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Robert Louis Jones; her daughter and son-in-law, Brenda Joyce Round and Richard Eugene Round; her brothers, James Arthur Monk and Billy Eugene Monk; and her parents, Arry Cross Monk and James Marion Monk.

Thelma is survived by her daughter, Louise Walker and husband Jackie of Sherman, Texas; her son, Michael Jones and wife Lynsey of Carmel-by-the-Sea, California; her brothers, Elvis Monk of Sherman, Bobby Monk and wife Barbara of Sherman, and Troy Monk and wife Becky of Upland, California; fourteen grandchildren; twenty-seven great-grandchildren; and six great-great-grandchildren. She also leaves behind many extended family members and friends who will carry forward the warmth, work ethic, and wisdom she shared so freely.

Funeral services for Thelma will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Monday, April 13, 2026, at Oak Hill Cemetery in Whitewright, Texas, with Pastor Leland Samuelson, officiating.

The family invites all who knew and loved Thelma to join them in celebrating a life well lived and a legacy of hard work, family devotion, a quiet strength, and a Christian faith that spans generations. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in her memory to Ida Baptist Church or to Texoma Medical Center’s volunteer program.