It is with a sad heart that we must share with you that Anne Jones passed away early on Tuesday October 11th. Tom, Cathy and other family members were at her side.

Anne was widely known and respected as a guitar teacher, singer and song leader, and was a dear friend of many in the folk music community.

She was an especially wonderful friend of those of us at the Two Way Street. As a member of the Jones Family String Band she headlined numerous feature shows at the coffee house and frequently performed on our festival stages. For twenty years, she and the Jones Family led our annual traditional Christmas show. She also led and played in countless sing-arounds, barn dance bands and other musical events.

It seemed that whenever people gathered to make music, Anne was there as a friendly and guiding presence.

We miss her greatly.

From the Jones Family:

Anne K. Jones, 72, of Lombard, IL, passed away Tuesday, October 11, 2011 after a 6 month battle with the recurrence of cancer. Anne was born Anne Matheny Kay on February 20, 1939 to William T. Kay and Eloise S. Kay in Rome, GA. She grew up in Rome, GA and has two sisters: Eloise and Margaret. In December 1961 she married Tom Jones, whom she met while attending the University of Chicago. They moved to Glen Ellyn, IL and raised four children: Cathy, Tom, Bill and Nate.

In the late 1960s, Anne began teaching guitar to children in the neighborhood and sharing her love of folk music. She soon started Tom and Anne Jones Folk Guitar and Banjo, which later moved from Glen Ellyn to Wheaton and became the Jones Family Music School. For more than 40 years, Anne taught guitar, autoharp and dulcimer to people from all around Chicago. She also volunteered to provide music for school programs, taught guitar for many of the local park districts and various adult education programs in the area in addition to running the Jones Family Music School. Anne's husband Tom taught banjo and guitar, and her daughter Cathy taught fiddle and mandolin. Together, Anne, Tom and Cathy performed as the Jones Family String Band, bringing folk music to many local schools, libraries and community events. In 1989, Tom and Anne moved into Tom's family home (previously owned by Tom's parents Louis and Mary Ruth Jones) in Lombard, IL where they continued to share their love of folk music with people in the communities around them.

In addition to her music, Anne was an avid quilter and loved to sew. She met weekly with a sewing group from her church and enjoyed teaching others about quilting while she learned from the others about knitting and crocheting. Anne was always collecting scraps of material to make quilts, many of which she gave to friends and family.

Anne is survived by her husband, Tom; her daughter, Cathy; her son Tom and his wife Laura (nee Hickman) and their children Sarah and Benjamin; her son Bill and his wife Caroline (nee Bays) and their children Austin and Suzannah; her son Nate and his wife Pamela (nee Jaycox) and their children Wesley and Adrian. She is also survived by her sisters Eloise and Margaret and Tom's brother Dick and Tom's sister Margaret. While Anne will be missed by all her family and the many lives she touched with her music, we take heart that she has now joined with her parents (William and Eloise Kay), her parents-in-law (Louis and Mary Ruth Jones) and her granddaughter Abigail, all of whom predeceased her.

Anne and Tom Jones are members of the Downers Grove Friends Meeting, where Tom's parents Louis and Mary Ruth Jones were founding members. There will be a Memorial Service for Anne Jones held at Downers Grove Friends Meeting in Downers Grove on Saturday, Oct. 29. More information can be found at: www.jonesfamilymusic.com or call (630) 889-9121.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to Music for Life Alliance at: MFLA, Anne Jones Memorial fund, 1124 University Drive Suite 9, Edwardsville, IL 62025. These funds will be used to further music education for young people. More information can be found at: www.musicforlifealliance.com

To celebrate Anne's life, her love of music and her work in the communities in the Western Suburbs, the family will hold an Open House and Music Jam at the Jones' home in Lombard, IL on Sunday, Oct. 30. For more details please visit www.jonesfamilymusic.com or call (630) 889-9121.

Additional information for members of the folk music community.