Andrew Bartlett Jones died peacefully May 9, 2012, surrounded by his family on the banks of the Connecticut River. He passed as he lived, with dignity and ever thoughtful of those around him, with love shared and grace throughout. Dona Nobis Pachem.
Andy was born in South Orange, New Jersey, sailed and fished the coastal New England waters, attended St. Paul’s where he was captain of the Halcyon rowing team and then Princeton studying philosophy. In 1942, he joined the Marine Corps and flew the formidable F4U Corsair in the Pacific theater of World War II. After the war he graduated from Princeton with a bachelor of arts and then Yale Drama School where he received a master of fine arts.
He married Janet Wallace of St. Louis in 1949, and they settled in Bedford, New York, to raise their three children amid a menagerie of animals in a converted barn. The family shared Andy’s enthusiasm for the outdoors skiing in winter and boating coastal waters aboard fishing boats of increasing dimension while Andy worked as a senior editor and writer at the Reader’s Digest Magazine.
In 1981, Andy and Janny moved their winter lives to Santa Fe, New Mexico, where they enjoyed the southwestern mountain climate and pursued their interests in bird watching and skiing. They continued their annual cross-country pilgrimage with an assortment of parrots and dogs for 21 years.
Andy wrote constantly infusing his three novels and copious volumes of journals with observations of his limitless interest in the natural world. He enthusiastically shared adventures with his family and friends by leading ever-growing parties to ski the headwall of Mount Washington and fishing off his beautiful lobster boat Halcyon wherever the bass were. His enthusiasm and energy were contagious and his joy in life was all encompassing. His wisdom and compassion served as a beacon of humility for all and his guidance was sound and thoughtful.
Andy is survived by his wife of 62 years, Janet, his daughters Brooke and Audrey, his granddaughter Lauren, and his son Seaver. He was loved as he was capable of loving, without reserve. Semper Fi.
