Kevin B. Jones, 66, long-time resident of Keene, Gilsum, and Acworth, died December 24, 2016 in the comfort of his home, following a brief period of failing health.
He was born in Keene, NH on November, 20, 1950, the son of Frangcon and Barbara (Thomas) Jones.
In the early 1950's his father taught at Bowdoin College, Brunswick, Me. For two seasons, his family was the caretaker of Admiral Robert Peary's summer home on Eagle Island, located in Casco Bay, Me. This experience helped to lay the foundation for a life-long appreciation of the secrets of life and the beauty of the natural world. In late August of 1954, his family survived a direct hit by Hurricane Carol, cultivating an interest in weather and climate.
In 1955, his family moved to Gilsum, NH, his father's childhood home. He attended the 4-room Gilsum Grammar School and enjoyed the freedom of playing in the unrestricting environs of a small, country town.
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His family moved to Keene in 1963, where he attended the Junior and Senior High Schools, graduating in 1968.
He had a teenage fascination with Formula One and Grand Prix racing, where he followed the careers of British racing star Jimmy Clark and others. This interest took him to races at Watkins Glenn, NY and the Bryer Motorsports Park, Loudon, NH., where he would race his Austin-Healy Sprite.
In August, 1967, at the age of 16, he bought tickets to a two day SCCA Trans Am event at the Loudon Speedway featuring Mark Donohue, Jr. He planned on camping in the fields surrounding the park. As dusk descended, he found a secluded spot in the tall grass and crawled into his sleeping bag. In the middle of the night, he was awakened by intense pressure on his chest! He stared up at the oil pan of a vehicle that had just run across his chest, narrowly missing his neck and head. The driver peered underneath the vehicle to glimpse at what the "bump" was. Seeing a person pinned, the driver immediately put the vehicle in reverse and drove back over his chest!
Miraculously, no bones were broken, or organs ruptured. This experience helped him to sharpen his awareness of his surroundings and it tempered his toughness, resiliency, and resolve: traits that would serve him well the rest of his life.
The premature racing deaths of his idols Jimmy Clark and Mark Donohue left a deep impact on Mr. Jones, which was reflected in his appreciation for the thoughtful and profound lyrics of Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, Phil Ochs, and Gordon Lightfoot.
He was a very sensitive and thoughtful person, who was greatly influenced by the multi-generation sense of justice and truth that his mother and grandfathers Rev. Thomas S. Barbour and Dr. Harold Thomas all possessed and instilled!
As a "child of the '60's", he had a deep calling to sound the alarm on the dangers of allowing our government to be ruled by the corruptive and corrosive forces of the military-industrial complex in a society that was growing indifferent to both the political and natural world.
When he turned 18, he refused induction into the Armed Forces. This decision was influenced, in part, by his grandfather Thomas, an astute political observer, who long felt the Vietnam War was wrong. Letters from his older brother serving in the Vietnamese coastal waters helped to solidify his decision.
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He was sentenced to 20 months in a federal prison in Danbury, Conn., a sentence, that curiously, was one of the harshest of the Vietnam era! He served time with several nationally renowned political activists, including Jesuit priests Philip and Daniel Berrigan, John Bach, and homeless advocate Mitch Snyder. This rich and rewarding experience would set the course for a lifetime of political activism, vigils, and demonstrations for peace and justice, where he crossed paths with actor Martin Sheen and was interviewed by CBS correspondent Connie Chung and Democracy Now correspondent Amy Goodman. His mother and Uncle would support him in spirit and in their presence, when possible.
In 1973, members of the Lakota Sioux and the American Indian Movement (AIM) occupied the tiny town of Wounded Knee in an effort to get the US government to honor treaties made in the 19th century. Mr. Jones was one of two non-natives that were smuggled behind a police and FBI cordon, as representatives of civil rights groups supporting their effort.
In the 1970's and 80's, he was employed at Bascom Sugar house, setting thousands of taps and running miles of tubing lines; during the late summer and fall, he was a member of Arthur Harvey's blueberry and apple picking crews, where he enjoyed the hard work and camaraderie.
In 1988, when Dr. James Hansen made his Congressional testimony on climate change, Mr. Jones took it upon himself to become a self-educated expert on global warming. He read scientific journals, took advantage of the emerging research tools of the internet, read books by and met experts like author/journalist Bill McKibben and scientist/author E.O. Wilson. He was particularly concerned about the impacts climate change might have on the maple sugar industry.
In 2009, he and 60 other activists were arrested with actress Darryl Hannah and Dr. Hansen, at a mountaintop mining protest in West Va.
Over the years, he would frequent the Jonah House, Baltimore, Md., run by the Berrigan's and worked with homeless advocate Mitch Snyder.
He met with and walked in honor of NH's Doris Haddock ("Granny D"), on a number of occasions, including the NH Rebellion 185-mile walk from Dixville Notch to Nashua in support of campaign finance reform.
Mr. Jones was an avid reader, devouring books by combat veteran/author Kurt Vonnegut, British scientist, philosopher/author James Lovelock, British mariner/author Tristan Jones, and Henry David Thoreau.
He enjoyed building and sailing small boats and hiking in the White Mountains.
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Mr. Jones lived an unconventional lifestyle. He shunned material wealth and possessed a strong constitution with unyielding principles. He believed in "loving all of the children, all of the species, all of the time!"
Survivors include his long-time friend Kathy Cobb of Keene, her son Jeremy Rossiter and his son Luke Rossiter; sister Viney Loveland and her partner Vincent Carron, Las Vertientes, Spain; brother Geoffrey Jones and his wife Sabine Duran and daughters, Stoddard, NH; Uncle Harold and Aunt Mary Thomas, Hingham, Mass.; several nephews, nieces, cousins, and many friends. Both of his parents died earlier.
A celebration of his life will be held May 13, 2017. Time and place to be announced in spring of 2017.
Contributions may be made in Mr. Jones's memory to Hospice, 312 Marlboro St., Keene, NH., or Hundred Nights, Inc. PO Box 833. 17 Lamson Street. Keene, NH 03431.
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