Frances Jones Reynolds

Frances Elizabeth Jones Reynolds, age 93, went home to be with the Lord on May 20, 2011. She was born at the family farm in Sydnorsville, Virginia on April 24, 1918, the daughter of Thomas Fine and Mattie Maude Jones. She grew up on the farm with her seven siblings and graduated from Rocky Mount High School. She attended Chestnut Primitive Baptist Church her entire life. She married her husband of 57 years, Roy W. Reynolds in 1939, and they made their home in Rocky Mount, Virginia. Over the years Roy and Frances ran a local restaurant, and were partners in the Jones and Reynolds sawmill business. Frances’ three passions in life were family, the farm and travel. She was a loving, caring, and funny mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, sister, aunt, and friend to so many throughout her life. She loved taking care of people and was always the first one there when someone needed help. The family farm was her favorite place on earth. She loved to visit often just to sit on the front porch watching for deer or driving around the property checking on cows. Family gatherings at the farm were some of her most cherished days. She remained active up until the last year of her life. She finally agreed to sell her four wheeler around age 85, but wasn’t too happy about it. On her 90th birthday she was sitting on the beach with her great granddaughters building a princess sand castle, and when she was 91 she got a game ball at an Atlanta Braves game-she rarely missed a game on TV. She loved to travel. As soon as you said go, her bags were packed. She made three cross country trips in her 80’s, and has visited every state in the nation with the exception of Alaska and Hawaii. She also took a Caribbean cruise with all of her grandchildren. She always needed a trip to look forward to and favorite spots were Myrtle Beach and Northern Virginia to visit her granddaughter. Frances was preceded in death by her husband Roy, her son William, her sister Ida (EE Law), and brothers George, Jessie (Alma), Thomas (Nancy), and sisters-in-law Mary Lee and Iva Jones. She is survived by her daughter Audrey and son-in-law Cecil Hodges, Jr.; grandchildren Cecilia, Jennifer, C.E. Hodges, III (Melissa) and Shad Reynolds (Emmanuelle). She has four great grandchildren Abigail, and Madelyn Hodges and Gabriel and Theo Reynolds. Other surviving family members include her brothers Herbert, Roy (Kitty) and Walter Jones, sisters-in- law Annie, Nannie Kate and Ruby Reynolds, Mildred Jones and daughter-in-law JeRena (Harold Handy). She also has many nieces and nephews that she loved as if they were her own children. The family would like to thank her caring Doctors, Jack Bumgardner and Philip Shiner, who took care of her for many years. We would also like to thank her many caregivers Sara Ritter, Edith Gonzalez and the staff at Franklin Health Care and Rehab Center. There are too many special family members and friends to mention that we would like to thank for all of your prayers, phone calls and visits to Frances over the past several years. Your support and friendship kept her happy and positive right up until the end. The family will receive friends at Frances’ home and also at Flora Funeral Service on Saturday, May 21, 2011 from 6-8 pm. The funeral service will be conducted by Elder Marvin Brumfield and Rev. David Long at Flora Funeral Chapel 3pm Sunday, May 22, 2011 followed by the burial service at Franklin Memorial Park. In lieu of flowers the family requests that contributions be made to the Franklin County Rescue Squad, Chestnut Primitive Baptist Church or the Leukemia Society.