Harold Hudson Jones, Jr.

Mr. Harold Hudson Jones, Jr. passed away at Spring Valley Health Care Center in Elberton, Georgia on Sunday, February 11, 2024, just two months after his 96th birthday.

He was born in Asheville, North Carolina on December 2, 1927, son of the late Harold Hudson Jones, Sr. (d. February 15, 1977) and Jane Lee Morrah Jones (d. January 16, 1980), and was also preceded in death by an infant sister (d. November 1933). In 1929, the family moved to Elberton, Georgia where Harold attended school and graduated as an honor graduate from Elberton High School in 1945.

He entered Presbyterian College in Clinton, South Carolina in April 1945. In January 1946, Harold was drafted into the United States Army. He received basic training at Fort Belvoir, Virginia, roughly 15 miles from Washington D.C. Following basic training, he was transferred to Fort McPherson in Atlanta, Georgia where he worked in a center discharging soldiers returning from WWII.

Harold returned to Presbyterian College in 1947, and graduated with cum laude honors in 1950 as 5th of 125 in his class. He majored in mathematics and chemistry. He taught math at the Tignall, Georgia High School during the 1950-1951 period, and also worked at his father’s meat market during this time.

Harold applied for and accepted a position with Southeastern Power Company (SEPA) in September 1952. He was proud to have scored the highest score at the time on the SEPA entrance exam, only answering two questions of 144 incorrectly. His work at SEPA determined the electric power generated at hydroelectric plants throughout the southeast. Work was done by hand until computers became available during the 1960s, at which time computer programs written by Harold were used. He retired in January 1995 after 43 year of faithful service to SEPA.

Mr. Jones was a dedicated member of the Elbert Community. He was a longtime member of First Presbyterian Church of Elberton where he served on the church session and as church treasurer for many years. Harold enjoyed his membership and the many friends he made at the Elbert County Historical Society.

In 1956, Clyde and Jean Adams introduced Harold Jones, Jr. and Martha Britt. After a two year courtship, the two were wed on July 27, 1958, and enjoyed nearly 63 years of wedded bliss. The family grew in 1962 with the birth of their daughter, Mary Martha and was completed in 1963 with the birth of their son, Harold Hudson, III. Martha preceded Harold in death on February 25, 2021.

Mr. Jones is survived by his daughter, Mary Martha Jones Fendley of Elberton, Georgia; son, Harold Hudson Jones, III of Elberton, Georgia; grandson, Kevin Michael Fendley of Snellville, Georgia; and a host of other relatives and friends.

The family will receive friends on Tuesday, February 13, from 5:30-7:00p.m. at Berry Funeral Home.

Funeral services celebrating Harold’s life will be conducted on Wednesday, February 14, at 11:00a.m. from the First Presbyterian Church of Elberton. The Rev. Charles Romine will officiate, and Mrs. Ann Lloyd and Mr. Jackson Caruso will provide music.

Interment and graveside services will follow the church service at Elmhurst Cemetery. Steve Bradley, Joe Brooks, Paul Caruso, Joe Fendley, Keith Jones, Mike Jones, and Herb Nadler will serve as pallbearers and honorary pallbearers will be Mike Britt, Mark Brooks, Brian Castellani, William Gordan, Todd Hindmon, Ned Jones, James Lynn, David Nichols, Bill Oppenheimer, Charles Sweat, and Paul Turner.

Flowers are accepted and contributions may be made in his memory to First Presbyterian Church of Elberton, PO Box 185, Elberton, GA 30635, Bethel E Baptist Church, 2576 Calhoun Falls Highway, Elberton, GA 30635, or to Lower Long Cane Presbyterian Church, PO Box 117, Troy, SC 29848.

A special thanks is extended to Mr. Jones’s staff of caretakers at his residence on Church Street from March 2021 to June 2023. A special thanks is also extended to the staff at Pruitt Health at Spring Valley for Mr. Jones’s care since his admittance there on June 30, 2023.

Those wishing may sign the online guestbook at berryfh.com.

Berry Funeral Home & Crematory of Elberton, Georgia is respectfully in charge of arrangements for Mr. Harold Hudson Jones, Jr.