Beloved wife, mother, grandmother Alma Ruth Jones Williams, passed peacefully at her home on March 1, 2024.  She was 85.

Born in the Coleman community of Carroll County in 1938, Alma was a lifelong resident of the area except for a brief period when Dan was in the Army & stationed at Ft. Sill, Oklahoma.  While in Oklahoma, Alma enjoyed keeping house in their tiny apartment & cooking for Dan's army buddies.  After returning to Galax, Alma resumed her work at Hanes Knitwear where she remained until her retirement after 37 years.   Not yet ready to stop working, she held part-time jobs as a cashier at Ingles grocery and prepared meatloaf (among other things) at The Diner in Hillsville. During her years of full-time work at Hanes, she relied on her boundless energy and love of cooking to harvest, can, and freeze an abundance of vegetables from the garden and make wonderful jellies and apple butter that she freely shared with family and neighbors.  She kept an immaculate house and took wonderful care of all those she loved.  One of her favorite times of the year was Thanksgiving when she was hostess to the extended Jones clan for a huge Thanksgiving Day lunch.  The traditional celebration was a November highlight for many years and enjoyed by family often numbering more than 20 well fed guests.  Tending a vegetable garden eventually gave way to flower gardening, an activity she enjoyed immensely.  Together with Dan, they spent countless hours working in the yard which was alive with color and a beautiful variety of plants.

Alma was baptized July 27, 1950 at Fairlawn Church of Christ, and has been a faithful member of Pisgah Church of Christ for most of her married life.  Alma married Dan Gordon Williams in 1956 – as the number of anniversaries grew, she often loved sharing how long she and Dan were married. She was quite proud of her many years with Dan and reflected often about how happy she had been.  Alma was a loving and supportive mother to daughter Jeannie (LaDonna Jean) and they grew closer as the years passed.  When son-in-law Keith joined the family, Alma came to love him not as an "in-law" but as a son.  Alma was always at the ready to help Jeannie & Keith, whether with the boys, housekeeping, cooking, or whatever was needed.  Great loves continued to enter her life with the arrival of grandsons Seth and Shane.  Alma was a "hands on" Nana, traveling to every event possible from sporting and scout events to school programs, and she enjoyed visits with the boys as often as possible.  She and Dan vacationed with the boys from the beach to Pigeon Forge to the WV Fair and spent many precious days just relaxing at the river (lovingly referred to as "Camp Nana"). As the boys grew into young men, so grew Nana's heart as she welcomed Brooke (Shane) & Honesty (Seth).  She often said that she was thankful that each of her grandsons had found their girls.  In 2022, Alma welcomed her latest love (and perhaps the sweetest), great granddaughter Lochlan.  Just the mention of "baby girl" was guaranteed to bring a smile to Alma's face, even in the last days of her life.  Thankful for technology, Nana & Pa were able to connect with Lochlan often which enabled Alma to watch Lochlan grow and change.  If hearts could melt, Alma's surely would have every time Lochlan would say "Nana" (& most recently, "love you, Nana").

In recent years, Alma's favorite pastime was sharing quiet and contended moments with Dan at their home.  They enjoyed morning coffee and toast while watching their backyard for a variety of critters that visited almost daily (often encouraged by scraps of food that were strategically placed).  She loved birdwatching from the kitchen window or from the comfort of the sofa. Most especially she loved watching for new images of Lochlan that would appear on the digital picture frame.

Alma was preceded in death by her parents, Elmer and Lottie (Robinson) Jones; two sisters, Agnes Gilpin and Irene Leonard; a brother, Junior (Robert) Jones; and an infant son, Gordon Terry Williams.  She is survived by her devoted husband Dan, daughter and son-in-law LaDonna (Jeannie) & Keith Foley of Mocksville, NC; grandson Seth Foley (Honesty) of Mocksville, NC; and grandson Shane Foley (Brooke) of New Kent, VA & great granddaughter Lochlan, also of New Kent.  She is also survived by sister Mary Edwards of Galax, and by several special nieces and nephews.

Funeral services will be held at 2:00 pm in the Chapel of Vaughn Guynn Funeral Home on Friday, March 8, 2024  with Marvin Williams officiating.  Visitation will precede the funeral service from 1:00   to 2:00 PM.   A very brief graveside service will follow at Fairlawn Church of Christ, and all are welcome to attend.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to Mountain Valley Hospice  at 1477 Carrollton Pike, Hillsville, Virginia  24343.  The family also wishes to thank the very special caregivers as well as the staff of Mountain Valley Hospice for the kind and compassionate care provided to Alma and the family over the last couple of months.  Many thanks also to the loving friends & family members for prayers, visits, food, cards, flowers, and support over several months – all were a blessing for which the family is deeply appreciative.

Vaughan-Guynn Funeral Home is serving the Williams family.