Rt. Rev. Bob Jones
Aug 22, 1932 -
Aug 8, 2026
The Rt. Rev. Bobby Gordon Jones, DD, 7th Bishop of Wyoming (Ret.), passed away on Aug. 8, 2026, in Richmond, Va. Bob was born on Aug. 22, 1932, in Paragould, Ark. A Navy veteran of the Korean War, he proudly served in an anti-submarine patrol squadron specializing in aviation ordnance. He graduated from Ole Miss and the Episcopal Theological Seminary of the Southwest and was ordained a deacon in 1959 and a priest in 1960.
He served at Trinity Cathedral in Little Rock, Ark., as assistant to the Dean, Hospital Chaplain and Youth Advisor. From 1962–1967, he was Priest in Charge of St. George's in the Arctic in Kotzebue, where he built a new vicarage and log church and served congregations in Nome and Noatak. He married Judith Edwards in 1963; their sons Rob and Tim were born in Kotzebue. The Bishop was widowed in 1989.
In 1967, he was asked to start a new congregation in Anchorage and founded St. Christopher's Episcopal Church in Anchorage, serving as Vicar and later Rector, while also ministering at the Alaska Native Hospital and congregations in Seward and Palmer. He was known fondly as "Fr. Bob" and was active in Anchorage civic organizations for the next 10 years.
Consecrated on Oct. 31, 1977, Bishop Jones served as the 7th Bishop of Wyoming, often flying his plane to visit 52 widely separated congregations statewide. He served on national church committees and boards supporting children, relief work and international education.
In 1993, he and Mary Page DeBordovave Rollins were married in Moose, Wyo., and combined their families with his two sons and her two daughters. In 1996, he was appointed Dean of St. George's College, Jerusalem. In 2000, he became Assisting Bishop of Cyprus and the Gulf; and served as an interim minister in Geneva, Honolulu, and Pensacola. In retirement, he volunteered as a CASA advocate and as a conductor/motorman on the Fort Collins, Colo., historic trolley, and enjoyed painting scenes inspired by NASA's James Webb Space Telescope.
His philosophy of life and death is summed up in this version of Hunter S. Thompson's words: "Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well-preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways—Sauvignon Blanc in one hand—chocolate in the other—body thoroughly used up, totally worn out and screaming 'Woo-Hoo,' what a ride!"
He is survived by his wife, Mary Page; sons, Robert (Christel) and Timothy (Whitney Parnell); stepdaughters, Cyane Tornatzky (Jake) and Elizabeth "Frankie" Rollins; five grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren.
A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. on Sept. 11, 2026, at St. Paul's Episcopal Church in Richmond, with interment at 11 a.m. on Sept. 26, 2026, at Christ Episcopal Church in Cody, Wyo. Please consider memorial contributions to Cathedral Home for Children in Laramie, Wyo.
