Back in Time - Mrs. Jones

Lining up for the Homecoming parade
Irene Jones on go-cart and Jerry Glasgow, standing
Pavillion High School
approximately 1968
Pavillion, WY

I love this photo because it shows how much Pavillion has changed. The street is now paved (only Main Street was paved in the 60s), and the Union 76 station has long since closed. The nearest place to purchase gasoline today is nearly 10 miles down the road in Kinnear. After this photo was taken, the Union 76 station became a laundromat, a private home, and then later a Fifties Diner. I'm not sure what it is today.

Behind the Panthers Go-Go sign you can see other parade entries - a flat bed with some individuals dressed as football players, a motor bike, and a pick-up pulling a flat bed trailer that was probably a class float, and a tractor that was either waiting for the parade to pass or was pulling another float. The Homecoming parades drew a crowd along Main Street, which is probably less than a quarter mile long.

Another reason that I love this photo is that it reminds me how much fun Mrs. Jones was to be around and how much she enjoyed life. Not many mothers in the late 60s even knew how to drive a go-cart much less drive it in the Homecoming parade!

Irene and her husband Eldon owned and operated the Basketeria, a local grocery store, for many years, and their daughter is still one of my close friends.

I don't know if she realized it, but Irene was a role model for many girls in our small community. She encouraged girls to make a life for themselves and to be independent. She was quick to offer a sympathetic ear and to offer advice when it was needed.

During my junior high and high school years, I went to several slumber parties at the Jones' home. Irene was always a gracious hostess for those over-night invasions. In my opinion, anyone who allows a group of six or seven giggling girls into their home for not one but several nights certainly deserves a medal.

Irene had a very distinct voice: if I close my eyes, I can still hear the lilt of her words and the tone of her voice.

Several times, I accompanied the Jones family to community concerts in Riverton and Lander. Attending those concerts was special: growing up on a dairy farm limited my opportunities because chores always came first. Because my mother was unable to provide this type of experience, I was grateful for the exposure to a variety of music and arts that the concerts and Mrs. Jones provided. Irene went out of her way to make me feel welcome in her home and with her family.

Irene was also a historian and a writer. She researched and compiled a book about the Pavillion community, titled Pavillion City, which I used when preparing these posts about the school. She preserved the community's history in her book.

Mrs. Jones was probably the first adult friend I had, and she was a good one. Sadly, I didn't have the opportunity to thank her for the positive role she played in my life.