Adrienne L. Jones

1935 - 2018

Adrienne Lash Jones, Ph.D.

Cary

Adrienne Lash Jones passed away on August 28th, 2018, in Cary North Carolina. She had been living in Cary for several years after the death of her husband, Morris. She passed surrounded by her loving family and friends. She was born in Salisbury, North Carolina, on July15, 1935, to Wiley I. Lash and Thelma Spalding Lash. She attended Price High School in Salisbury, and went on to Fisk University where she joined Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority and graduated with honors in 1956. She later continued her education at Case Western Reserve University, gaining an M.A in 1979, and a Doctorate in American Studies in 1983. Adrienne is one in a long line of scholars in the Lash family including her mother who also earned a Ph.D., and other members with advanced degrees dating as far back as the late nineteenth century. She married L. Morris Jones, M.D., in 1957, and in 1958 headed to Cleveland to start his medical practice and the Jones family. She had twin boys (Darryl and Derek) and five years later another son, Brian. Her husband's medical practice was established in the Hough neighborhood, which became the backdrop for Cleveland's struggles around civil rights in the tumultuous 60's. Adrienne's journey from the Jim Crow South toward community service and the fight for racial justice was born of that crucible.

As the struggle for equal rights for all people wore on, Adrienne became more and more involved. Being bright, personable, passionate, and famously well organized, it wasn't long before she became recognized as a local leader. She hosted events with local leaders such as Mayor Carl Stokes and national figures such as Malcolm X in her home. The Jones family was an early anchor family in the burgeoning and newly integrated Ludlow community of Shaker Heights, which was allowing African Americans to buy homes at the time. Adrienne's talents and platforms grew, even while she "did it all" for her family. And you know she looked good while she did all of this if you knew her at all! We all knew her as able to accomplish almost anything.

Adrienne became a key figure in Cleveland's philanthropic community serving as a Board Member of the Cleveland Foundation, The Cleveland Museum of Art, and Fisk University, along with countless other committees, boards, organizations, groups and teams. She established a partnership between Case Western and Fisk which lives on to this day. Her accomplishments as a member of the powerful boards of the Museum and the Cleveland Foundation for many years are literally beyond counting. She also served for many years as a Global VP for YWCA INC, traveling the world fighting institutional racism. Even with all of this, she also never faltered at the home level - making it to every game, show, match, meeting, conference, or study session.

Through the eighties and into the nineties, her academic life led her to teach Black Studies at Oberlin College, where she became the first female black tenured professor in their 100+ year history and later became the department head of Black Studies for 20 years. There she left her indelible mark on countless students, colleagues, and alumnae as she worked to improve the institution.

As the nineties came to a close, Adrienne and Morris retired and started the next chapter of their lives together in Myrtle Beach S.C., where the family had enjoyed a vacation home for many years. There they welcomed grandchildren into the world, hosted family and friends, and continued to embody the blessings of true love. With Morris's passing in 2015, Adrienne moved to Cary N.C. to be closer to her beloved sister Elaine and her daughters and Grands. She loved her new found church home, made friends, and pressed on with life. Adrienne Jones is truly a person of so much impact, of so much consequence. She was a loving and devoted wife to Morris for 60 years, a selfless mother, and a reliable friend each and every day of her life. She will be sorely missed and is survived by her sons, her sister Elaine, her brother Wilbur Thomas, nieces Robin, Denise, Toby, Donna, grandchildren, Justin, Jade, Christina, Chloe and Christopher, three great grandchildren, friends, family, and community. She saw and caused so much change.

Services to be held at Good Shepherd United Church of Christ. 1050 NW Maynard Rd, Cary, NC 27513. September 22nd 11:00am. Donations are asked to be made to Good Shepherd United Church of Christ (https://www.gsucc.org/donate), or to the palliative care facility that helped our family through her end of life care so wonderfully; Transitions LifeCare, (https://transitionslifecare.org/donate).