815 North Augusta Street
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Last updated on November 21, 2024
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Kenneth L. Jones was an African American businessman and civil leader from Staunton. Jones attended Booker T. Washington Junior High School. He received his Bachelor of Science degree from West Virginia State College. Jones worked as an educator in Oklahoma and at the Rosenwald School in Waynesboro. In 1945, Jones received his funeral director's license and opened the Kenneth L. Jones Funeral Home, where he served as its operator until 1994. Jones was an active member of his community and civic organizations, including the Staunton Interracial Commission, the Board of Directors of the United Negro College Fund of Virginia, NAACP, the Board of Directors for United Way of Staunton and Augusta County, Staunton School Board (1975-1979), Staunton Mental Health Board, and Staunton Democratic Committee. Jones was a lifetime member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity as well as the Mt. Zion Lodge #18. Jones served as the treasurer of the Effie Ann Johnson Day Nursery for thirty years and was a member of the Augusta Street United Methodist Church. Jones was the first African-American to be elected to Staunton's city council and served as vice mayor (1968-1972). Jones's awards include the NAACP Lifetime Achievement Award, Shenandoah Valley Hit's 1992 Black History Month Male Business Person of the Year, and the Rosenwald Alumni Award for Service. The Kenneth L. Jones Memorial Scholarship was established in 2007 at the Community Foundation of Central Blue Ridge by the niece and nephew of the late Mr. Jones in his honor. The Staunton Augusta County African American Research Society dedicated a historical marker to the Kenneth L. Jones Funeral Home in 2022. Today, the building houses the Masonic Mount Zion Lodge No.18 of Staunton.
