Surrounded by the love of family, Connie Dee (Henderson) Jones, of Stillwater, went to be with Jesus on Saturday, October 14th, 2023 in Edmond, Oklahoma.

Connie could not have been more proud to have been born and raised in Atwood, Kansas, otherwise lovingly referenced as "God's Country." She was born to C.T. and Ruth Henderson on October 13, 1936, and lived an idyllic small-town childhood full of family, friends and community. She shared countless stories of days filled with cousins coming and going, Aunt Gertie's homemade breakfasts for the farmhands, Aunt Myrt's store, her father's gas station, the excitement of bartering when the gypsies came through town, the ice cream fountain, the Jayhawk Theater where she sold popcorn and the yearly Alumna reunion.

Connie graduated high school as a proud Atwood Buffalo and went on to study Nursing at Marymount College in Salina, Kansas where she graduated in 1957. Connie immediately started working as a dedicated nurse in the areas of emergency care, labor and delivery and at the end of her career, Cancer Care of Stillwater.

While at Marymount, Connie met a charming young airman, Robert Jones, whom she married in 1957 and had three children: Ted, Tyler and Carrie.

Connie always loved God first and was a dedicated daughter, sister, cousin, aunt, nurse, wife, mother, friend, colleague, neighbor and grandmother. One of her biggest sources of joy came from her grandchildren...afternoons of playing with Logan, tea parties with Mia, countless walks to Chick-Fil-A for lunch with Roman and Reid and fun times at the zoo.

Second in line were her cats - or her family, it could vary depending on the day. She also loved her friends and neighbors deeply, and could often be found enjoying time with a neighbor, playing bridge with friends, sharing time with Elaine and the Fox family or enjoying a Coke at the local Sonic Drive-In with Barbie.

Her heart for travel started young, when she would often travel with her family and later drive for her father, who served in the Kansas State House of Representatives. As she grew, so did her desire to travel. She took her grandmother's words to heart..."Go every chance you get, you can stay home when you're old." She packed up her family twice a year to travel back to Atwood for reunions and snow covered Thanksgivings. She took every opportunity to experience new places - traveling to beautiful Hawaii with Tyler and the Weir's, later returning with her friend Sally, and finally her second husband, Richard. She took Tyler and Carrie for adventures in St. Kitts and Nevis, drove with Carrie to the furthest point in Maine and jumped on an old schooner for a mother-daughter adventure at sea. She and Robert took the family on camping outings in their RV as well as made countless visits to California, South Carolina, Missouri and other states to visit Bob while he was working on the road. In 2007 she took a trip of a lifetime and traveled with family and friends to Europe. She could always be counted on for a spontaneous road trip adventure, vacations with the family, as well as enjoying numerous excursions all across the country with her late husband Richard.

Not one to express herself through an abundance of words...Connie was straight forward, strong willed and pleasingly pragmatic. She was also independent, hardworking, witty, sarcastic and silly, intelligent, strong, talented, giving and fun. She beautifully expressed her creativity through her love of playing piano, singing, and her master ability to quilt, which she never tired of, constantly inventing new creations for competitive shows, customers and numerous family members.

Connie loved God, antiques, music, unsweet iced tea, chocolate chip cookie dough, her cats, her family, movies (especially her favorite...Gone with the Wind), learning, cooking one of her signature favorites like enchiladas, sugar cookies and egg rolls. She also loved sunflowers, the beautiful state of Kansas, playing the piano, Tom Selleck, and singing.

One of her favorite places to be was the ocean. She walked the sands of many beaches over her lifetime, but there was no body of water more alluring than Lake Atwood...where she spent countless hours swimming with friends in the hot lazy days of summers, ice skating in the winter and wistfully reliving the memories for years to come.

Connie made an impact on countless lives. From those she helped bring into this world, to the ones she helped depart through her work at Cancer Care and her time volunteering for Hospice of Stillwater. She will be forever missed. Until we see each other again...which we will.

Connie was pre-deceased by her grandparents, parents, cousins, uncles, aunts, husband Robert Jones in 2003, second husband Richard Randolph in 2023, as well as several favorite felines. She is survived by her three children: Robert Theodore "Ted" Jones, Tyler William Jones (wife Susan, son Logan Scott and daughter, Mia Claire) and Carrie Lee Jones Redding (husband Jeff, sons Roman Jefferson and Reid Henderson), nephew Scott Carroll (Henderson) Anderson and niece Cynthia Louise (Henderson) Callahan, multiple beloved cousins, extended family and many friends near and far.

A memorial service will be held at Sunnybrook Christian Church, 421 E. Richmond Road in Stillwater, on Thursday, November 2nd at 3:30pm. A come and go celebration of life will follow at one of Connie's favorite eateries, Mexico Joes.

Thank you to everyone for your thoughts and prayers for the family during this difficult time.