Margaret Jones
Jul 20, 1924 -
Jan 24, 2021
Margaret Jones, age 96, passed away peacefully in her sleep on Jan. 24, 2021, at JAA Weinberg Terrace in Pittsburgh, Pa. She is survived by daughters,Yvonne Renfrew of Los Angeles, Calif., and Russellyn Carruth (Bernie Goldstein) of Anchorage, Alaska, and Pittsburgh; granddaughters, Casey Carruth-Hinchey of Anchorage, Nicole Renfrew and Danielle Renfrew Behrens; great-grandchildren, Joss, Vivienne and Hugo; and longtime caregivers, Adam Fogarty, Tuwuanna Coward and Lataija Barron of Pittsburgh.
Margaret was very much part of the Great Generation.She had tragedy in her life, but she soldiered on without complaint Her first husband, Captain Russell Greenwood, was a Marine fighter pilot who died in the Pacific Theater in 1944. At age 19, widowed, a single parent of an 11-month-old daughter and four months pregnant with a second child, she drove across country to settle with her parents in California. There, she built a new life, working as a secretary on a military base while her parents babysat.
Margaret married her second husband, Robert Jones, in 1947. He adopted her two daughters and helped raise them as his own. He was an Army veteran of World War II, serving in the Engineer Corp in North Africa and Italy, rising to the rank of captain. Margaret chose well; he was a devoted family man until his death in 2011.
After raising her children, Margaret rejoined the work force. She started as a secretary at her daughters' high school and progressed ultimately to executive assistant to the president of a California State College. Margaret was smart, capable and efficient, but her education went only as far as high school and secretarial school. Her daughters - both lawyers - are convinced that, if she had been born 20 years later, she would have been the college president, not just his executive assistant.
Gifts in Margaret's memory may be made to JAA Weinberg Terrace, 5757 Bartlett Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15217.
Professional Services trusted to D'Alessandro Funeral Home and Crematory Ltd., Pittsburgh, Pa., www.dalessandroltd.com.
