In memory of Virgina Louise
Jones:
My dear friend, Ginger was diagnosed
with lung cancer July, 1988 and died January 1989. We
surprised her with a day at Galveston and dinner the night
of her 42nd birthday. She had just found out about the
cancer and it was our last hurray! Ginger and I talked
every weekend, she live in Houston and I lived in the
HEB area. It was very hard not to call her, and I did
several times, forgetting she was gone.
Ginger was my no nonsense friend, always
practical, and I needed that. Her best feature was her
honest personality and her beautiful blue eyes. She was
a high school English teacher and later a counselor. She
was wonderful at her profession because she enjoyed it!
Pandora Elder Webb
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In Memory of My Sister,
Ginger (never Virginia!) began her school
career at Alice Carlson Elementary, progressed to McLean
JH, then went on to graduate from PHS with the class of
1964. Among the things she cherished were family, friends
and her memories of her classmates in the class of Ś64.
Some of you began as friends in elementary school, others
came into the picture later, but she loved you all. Ginger
was so good about keeping in touch with lifelong friends.
After PHS Ginger went on to earn a BS in Education from
Texas Tech University and a Master's in Guidance & Counseling
from Sam Houston State University.
She began her teaching career at Cy-Fair
High School in Houston in 1968 and taught English there
for 17 years before moving to Elsik High School in the
Alief School District in Houston. She taught English for
one year before becoming a counselor at Elsik. She enjoyed
her students and was a huge proponent of higher education.
A scholarship was established by her peers at Elsik when
she died.
Ginger loved life, music, traveling,
and getting together with friends and family. Her niece
and nephews were like her own children. She enjoyed traveling
with her friends, and spent many wonderful hours on trips
with her mother. Being an English teacher -- Shakespeare
was a favorite and during two trips to England she visited
many of the sites connected to him. I spent four summers
in Houston with Ginger while going to graduate school.
It was a great opportunity for us to become more than
just sisters. We spent hours biking, listening to music,
talking and generally getting closer to each other. What
fun we had!
In the spring of 1988 Ginger developed
a cough that wouldnąt go away. After 3 months of doctors
visits and testing, she was diagnosed with lung cancer.
She began chemotherapy in August, 1988. On January 22,
1989 she went into cardiac arrest and died while in the
hospital having a chemo treatment. She was 42 years old.
We all still miss her and her bubbly personality.
Beverly Spencer
