Paul Byron Jones

Sep 7, 1931 -

Feb 17, 2024

Paul Byron Jones died on Feb. 17, 2024, at 92. Paul was born in Las Cruces, N.M., on Sept. 7, 1931, to John Byron and Georgia Wilma Strough Jones. He graduated from New Mexico Military Institute in Roswell and then received a B.S. in civil engineering from New Mexico State University. He was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and called to active duty in the Korean War. Following discharge, he studied structural engineering at Stanford University and worked as an engineer. He then went to law school at the University of Texas at Austin.

He and daughters Anne and Marcia moved to Anchorage, Alaska, in 1965. He was initially employed by the Attorney General's Office and then the State Housing Authority. He was appointed in 1968, by Governor Walter Hickel, as a District Court Judge in Anchorage. In 1980, he was appointed by Governor Jay Hammond as the first Superior Court Judge in Kotzebue, Alaska. Following his retirement in 1991, he assisted his wife, Alexis, in her law practice and they traveled the world with their children, Alexandra and Robert.

Paul was preceded in death by his parents; his first wife, Patricia Wright; third wife, Alexis G. Foote; and many dear friends, relatives and animal companions.

Paul is survived by partner, Hildegard Shepherd; son, Robert Foote-Jones; daughters, Alexandra Foote-Jones, Anne Boesenberg and Marcia Alfaro; grandchildren, Beth, Ben, Jeremy, Isabella, Leila, Basil and Lucas; and great-granddaughter, Maddox.

A Memorial Service will be held on March 17, 2024, at 3 p.m., at Hillside O'Malley Seventh-day Adventist Church and will be live-streamed on the church's website. In lieu of flowers, a donation may be made to the Hillside O'Malley Seventh-day Adventist Church, Friends of Pets, or your local church or animal rescue charity.