Aina Jones Obituary

Aina Ausma Jones, 83, of El Dorado died April 10, 2015

Aina's life began on October 3, 1931 in Riga, Lativa, the daughter of Valdemars Datzines Atgazis and Elvira Liepina Atgazis. She was the oldest of two children. Her family left Latvia after the Soviet invasion of 1944, and traveled west to Germany. Because her family were refugees, they were placed in a concentration camp. She was a survivor of that concentration camp, as well as several Displaced Persons (DP) camps in Germany. Her family eventually settled in Wurzburg, Germany. There, she attended technical college, and held a job as an electrical manufacturing supervisor at Siemens Corporation.

In June of 1965, she married U.S. Army Sergeant Major Ronald Lee Jones, of Uhrichsville, OH. As an army wife, she spent time stationed in Germany, Ft. Bragg, NC, Ft Riley, KS, El Paso, TX and Colorado Springs, CO. She lived in Colorado Springs for over 20 years, and has many friends there. In 2002, she moved to El Dorado, KS to be near her children and their families.

Aina is survived by her children, Aida (Steve) Hiser of El Dorado, and Ronald (Mindy) Jones of El Dorado; grandchildren Ronald Hiser of El Dorado, Krystal (Ross) Stumpf of Towanda, and Delaney Jones of El Dorado; great-grandchildren Alex Hiser, Isabella Geltz, and Phoenix Hiser; her brother, Valdis (Dzintra) Atgazis of Riga, Latvia, and her grumpy but lovable cat, Tequila.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Ronald Lee Jones,Sr., and her son Andris Valdis Jones of Santa Fe, NM.

Aina was a friend to everyone. She never met a stranger. If anyone came to visit, she would stuff them with excellent homemade schnitzel, fried potatoes, bratwurst and sauerkraut. She bought fine chocolate for everyone at the doctor's office, and flowers for her daughter in law. Her kindness was never ending. She would help anyone without question, whether it was a stray cat or a friend in need. She was an excellent gardener, and shared everything she grew. Aina loved cold coffee with ice cream, pickled herring (not at the same time) and her family.

Though Aina never achieved her nearly life-long goal of winning the lottery (so she could give the money away), she taught her family many important lessons. These include: Don't throw away recyclables. Hard work is good for you. Look at the moon when planting your garden. Put sour cream on burns. Skunks won't spray if they know you are their friend. There is more joy in giving than receiving.

Aina requested a small family service, which is pending.

Aina loved all animals. Memorial contributions in her name are directed to Alex's House Dog Rescue in care of Carlson Funeral Home in El Dorado, KS