- Date Of Birth: April 6, 1973
- Date Of Death: March 14, 2022
- State: Alabama
Remembering Ben
On Monday, March 14, 2022, Benjamin “Ben” Blackwell Jones of Moulton, Alabama, joined the
Church Triumphant. He was 48 years-old.
Ben was born to the Rev. Robert Houston Jones and Ann Kerce Jones on April 6, 1973, in
Hattiesburg, MS. He graduated from Hattiesburg High School in 1991, and received his
bachelor’s degree in Marketing from The University of Southern Mississippi. Ben worked for
some time as a sales professional with a satellite-TV provider while based in Jackson, MS.
However, he would transition his expertise to Moulton, AL, where he opened his own insurance
agency, Ben Jones State Farm. Ben was a devoted member of Moulton First United Methodist
Church. Most Sundays you could find him uplifting those in the congregation with his beautiful
tenor voice and concert-tested skills at the piano.
Ben found his soulmate in the former Margaret Stevens of Quitman, MS. They exchanged their
vows on November 11, 2000. Their union blessed them and all of us with a daughter, Mary
Anna. Ben would confide with those close to him that it was the love of his girls that sustained
him. They gave him the two roles he was most proud: “husband” and “daddy.”
Ever the optimist, Ben was quick to offer an encouraging word and he was the walking
embodiment of the old adage “if you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all.”
He would quickly steer someone dwelling on the negative towards all the positive things that
could also happen. Ben never met a pot of crawfish or steak on the grill he didn’t like. However,
he would quickly tell you the quickest way to improve either would be to surround them with his
family and friends. And if there was a piano nearby, all could rest assured that it would be
played. An avid golfer, Ben never missed an opportunity to play a round either.
To his bandmates, he was a musician’s musician—a pitch-perfect singer who sang with enough
power to rival any professional opera tenor. Ben shared with them a bond—a
brotherhood—uniquely created over thousands of miles (often traveled in the middle of the
night) and hundreds of stages throughout Southeast Mississippi over the last 25+ years with them
often half-jokingly telling him to “turn your bass down!”
Ben is preceded in death by his mother, Ann. He is survived by his wife, Margaret; his daughter,
Mary Anna; his father, Bob Jones, and his brother, Bart Jones (Michelle, Allie Mayers).
Church at 1:00 p.m.
Moulton First United Methodist Church
14595 Market Street
Moulton, AL 35650
