Merle Lester Jones

A U.S. Navy World War II veteran, Merle was born in the middle of the last worldwide pandemic on November 3, 1919 in Turtle Creek, Pa. He was the youngest of four children, and his family moved to Philadelphia shortly after Merle was born. He enlisted in the Navy in 1942, received his Advanced Flight Training wings in 1944, then his F6-F Hellcat fighter pilot certification later that year. He served as a Naval Aviation Fighter Pilot on active duty until 1946, then in the U.S. Naval Reserve until 1950. In 1945, he met and married the love of his life, Del Jones. They were together for 71 years until her passing in 2017. Merle then enrolled in Penn State University under the GI Bill, and graduated in 1952 with a bachelor's degree in aeronautical engineering. He worked in the aerospace industry from 1952 until he retired in 1980.

He took a short break from his aerospace career to become the pastor of Jamestown Baptist Church in Jamestown, Rhode Island from 1958 to 1962. In 1962, he moved his family to Cleveland to get back into the rocket scientist business by taking a position at NASA, which he held until he retired in 1980. Merle and his wife, Del, moved to Tucson in 1980, where they both became active in the community through volunteer and public service work. In his retirement years he was a tour guide at the Titan Missile Museum for nearly 20 years, a Meals-on-Wheels delivery driver, active in the Tucson Lions Club, and several other service organizations. He played tennis two or three times a week until he was in his early 90’s. He was the patriarch of a large family consisting of more than 100 family members. He is survived by his three sons, Jeff, Steve, and Scott. He was loved and adored by his nine grandchildren, and 31 great-grandchildren.

A memorial life celebration will be held in Fellowship Hall at Catalina United Methodist Church on Friday, July 22, 2022 at 4:00 pm. Merle’s ashes will be placed next to his beloved wife and life partner, Del, earlier that day in the Veterans Wall at East Lawn Palms Cemetery in Tucson. He will receive full Military Honors.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests a contribution to The Tucson Breakfast Lions Foundation. Donations can be made at tucsonbreakfastlionsclub.org. Click on the LIONS CAMP TAYITEE logo, and then on the GIFT button.