Jonas E. Lee Jr.

1928 - 2020

Jonas Edward Lee Jr.
September 1, 1928 to September 16, 2020
Jonas Edward Lee Jr. was born in Dietrich, Idaho to Jonas E Lee Sr. and Leola M. Beeghley. He had two sisters and four brothers. He grew up in Twin Falls County and the greater Treasure Valley. He attended schools in Nyssa and Ontario, Oregon, Apple Valley and Notus, Idaho. Growing up during the Great Depression kept him humble and committed to hard work and sacrifice. After his father grew ill, Jonas dropped out of Caldwell High school to help his family.
On March 11, 1945 he attended a tent revival where he accepted Jesus Christ as his personal Savior. At that time, he was asked to help a Meridian farmer, John Wynia, who had been injured. Working in exchange for room and board he moved to the Allan Ownby dairy farm and later to the Joe Deward family dairy farm located on Pine Street. Jonas was taken in and loved by these three families, who strongly encouraged him in returning to Meridian High School which was located adjacent to the current Meridian Post Office. Jonas would milk the cows in the morning, go to school, then come home and milk again.
He joined the U.S. Air Force in November 1948 and completed his GED. He was initially sent to Sheppard Air Force Base in Wichita Falls, Texas. Subsequently he was sent to Davis-Monthan Air Force Base in Tucson, Arizona where he trained and was given the chance to fly with the secret B50 history making, around the world refueling mission with the B29 in Feb. 1949. He declined after praying and hearing God say "Jonas don't go" three times. The B29 crashed with no survivors. He served during the Korean War and became a Sergeant at Donaldson Air Force Base in Greenville, South Carolina. In 1951 he was sent to the Rein-Main Air Base in Frankfurt, Germany, where in his spare time, he worked with Youth for Christ helping to calm the fears of the military's presence after WWII.
On July 7, 1952 he married Sally Ann Roher in Tucson Arizona, whom he had met while stationed there previously. Soon after they moved to Meridian where they raised five children. They attended Meridian Nazarene Church. They owned and operated Lee's Spray Service, providing pest control service throughout the Treasure Valley and into Valley County. During their marriage, Jonas and Sally hosted 24 exchange students from South America, Europe, and Asia, many of whom call Jonas, Dad. Jonas and Sally later divorced.
In 1987 he married Mary Louise Russell Vandermeer, and gained a whole new family to love, in addition to his own. They moved to a family farm in Mountain Home. He helped care for his step great-grandchildren: Hunter, Holton, and Hayden. Some of their favorite memories with him were on the farm in the desert riding the four-wheeler, catching frogs, herding cows, or learning how to ride a horse. He was never too old to join in on the fun.
He is survived by his wife Mary, his children: Michael Edward (Deana Cameron), Vickie Ann Dahlin (Steven), daughter in law Charlotte Spielmann-Lee (David Brian), Debra Sue Harder (David) (Dennis Cole) and Laura Lynn Roher; 15 grandchildren, 10 step-grandchildren and numerous great-grandchildren. He is further survived by siblings Arthur Leroy, George William and Betty Lou Dykes, and numerous nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his brothers Charlie Joe and Dale David, a sister Eliza Mae (May), his son David Brian, his first wife, Sally Lee and his granddaughter, Janet Sue Cole. The family would like to say a special thank you to the staff at Streamside Memory Care and Keystone Hospice Care for their excellent and loving care of Jonas.
A viewing for Family and friends will be held at Zeyer Funeral Chapel, 83 North Midland Blvd, Nampa, Idaho on September 23, 2020 between 6:00pm to 8:00pm. A memorial service will be held at Bethel Church of the Nazarene, 3001 12th Ave Rd, Nampa, on September 24, 2020, at 11:00AM. In lieu of flowers, family requests donations be made to Trinity Pines Camp and Conference Center at 55 SW 5th Avenue, Suite 100, Meridian, Idaho 83642.