Chris was born on August 5, 1948, in Dallas, Texas to Vernon and Marie Brooks. She graduated from Garland High School in 1966 and earned a Bachelor's Degree in Education from Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, Texas in 1970.
At fifteen years old, Chris met the love of her life, Cary. For Cary, it was love at first sight: “She was coming up the stairs, and I was going down the stairs. She looked up and smiled at me with that twinkle in her eyes. She was magical. I was immediately in love with her. My love continues ‘til this day and forevermore.”
Chris and Cary were married in 1969 in Perkins Chapel on the campus of Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas. They moved to Austin soon after, where they had two children together, Anne Marie and Abigail. Chris took great pride in being a mom. She made her girls’ clothes, wrote notes for their lunch boxes every day, put together impressive summer camp care packages, and organized immaculately detailed birthday parties. Her love and support of her family was never in doubt.
Chris worked for more than thirty years as an elementary school teacher in both the Austin and Eanes Independent School Districts. She primarily taught grades 3–5 and was certified in English as a Second Language (ESL) and Special Education. She particularly enjoyed teaching Math and Science and was a grammar enthusiast. After retiring, she continued to serve students as a substitute teacher. Chris’ classrooms reflected her remarkable patience, inclusiveness, creativity, and capacity to lead with both strength and kindness.
Chris loved her pets, shoes, decorating for holidays, a good pedicure, watching NCIS and Seinfeld, rocking chairs, art, chocolate, and all kinds of music. She welcomed new experiences and had a spontaneous and fun-loving side. Early in their life together, Chris and Cary sold everything they owned and backpacked through Europe for almost five months. She was a certified scuba diver with completed dives in Hawaii, the Virgin Islands, and other Caribbean destinations. In addition to frequent travel within the States and several trips to Europe, Chris traveled to Romania on a mission trip to benefit orphaned children and to Israel on a historical tour with her sister, Karen. Mendocino, San Francisco and Santa Fe were among Chris’s favorite vacation destinations. On a weekly and even daily basis, Cary and Chris satiated their wanderlust driving through the Texas Hill Country and exploring Austin’s neighborhoods.
Children and animals gravitated to Chris. She loved the sounds of the birds and insects and was never afraid to pick up a bug. She knew plants by name and took great care with her begonias, ferns, philodendrons, and ivy. Nature was her cathedral and a place she found a deep connection with Spirit.
Chris loved God. She brought up her family at Tarrytown Methodist Church in Austin, and later attended the Church of Conscious Harmony. Her favorite scripture was the Psalms. She loved to sit in silent prayer, and it brought her comfort to sing traditional hymns and to pray the Lord’s Prayer and the Prayer of Saint Francis. Christmas was her favorite time of year, which is fitting for her bright, giving and celebratory spirit.
Chris is preceded in death by her mother, Lucille Marie Brooks; her father, Vernon Henry Brooks; and her brother, Ken Nelson Brooks.
She is survived by her husband, Cary Jones, and their daughters, Anne Marie Van-Jones and Abigail Jones; their grandsons, Donovan and Nicholas Van-Jones, who she spent many weekends with over the last five years; her sister, Karen Ashlock; and many beloved cousins, nieces, nephews, and friends.
Celebration of Life for Christine Brooks Jones
Sunday, December 18, 2022
Reception at 8:30am
Service at 9:30am
Umlauf Sculpture Gardens
605 Azie Morton Rd
Austin, TX 78704
In lieu of flowers, please consider supporting a classroom project that inspires you and “helps students in every community have the tools and experiences they need for a great education” at www.donorschoose.org.
Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.cookwaldenfuneralhome.com for the Jones family.
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