The wedding party of Alton and Rosalie Jones are pictured above, from left, Howell Jones (brother of the groom), Alton Jones (groom), Lucille Skrobarcek (sister of the bride), Rosalie Ordner Jones (bride), Catherine Carlucci (sister of the bride), Father Charles Ordner (brother of the bride and priest who presided at the wedding) and Albert Ordner (brother of the bride). Contributed photo

The French author Andre Maurois wrote, “A happy marriage is a long conversation which always seems too short.” Alton and Rosalie Jones have shared such a relationship. On June 6 they celebrated their 75th wedding anniversary surrounded by family and friends.

By looking at the smiles on their faces in their photos–on their wedding day, June 6, 1938, at the old St. Patrick Cathedral, and more recently at their present home in Austin–their life together has been a very happy conversation indeed.

		Rosalie and Alton Jones in 1938, the year they were married. Contributed photo

Msgr. Mark Chamberlin, pastor of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Parish in Portland, where they lived for 38 years, held them up as models for married couples. “They were always kind and cheerful together, always coming to church holding hands, always upbeat and positive in their relationship with fellow parishioners,” Msgr. Chamberlin said.

“Alton and Rosalie were great examples to the community–not only for their involvement in the church’s activities, but for their obvious devotion to each other,” the pastor said.

Their steadfast faith in God and in each other is also intertwined with the beginnings and growth of the Diocese of Corpus Christi. For one thing, they are all close to the same age. The diocese hit the century mark last year and Alton Jones turns 100 on Sept. 19. On that same day, his bride celebrates her 95th birthday.

Rosalie Anne Ordner was born on Sept. 19, 1918 in Violet, a small farming community between Corpus Christi and Robstown.  Her parents, Herman and Mary Ordner, and their children attended St. Anthony’s Church in Violet, where she received the sacraments.

Herman Ordner was a member of the Knights of Columbus and the Holy Name Society. He was a carpenter, dealt in real estate and was involved in farming. Rosalie’s mother was known to be a “very saintly person.”

Old Saint Patrick Cathedral, where Rosalie and Alton were married in 1938. The couple celebrated their 75th anniversary June 6. Contributed photo

Herman and Mary had 11 children: six boys and five girls. Of the boys, two died in infancy and two became priests. Father Aloysius J. “Louis” Ordner was ordained in May 1933. Father Charles H. Ordner was ordained in May 1937. Another brother owned a grocery store and another sold cars. Of the girls, four of the five went to Incarnate Word Academy.

Alton Carroll Jones was born Sept. 19, 1913 in his grandmother’s house in the small community of Sandia, located between Orange Grove and Mathis. His parents were Walter Cleveland Jones and Lola Idell Jones. He had an older brother Howell Jones. The father was the town barber in Mathis who liked baseball and once took his son Alton to Houston to see Dizzy Dean and the St. Louis Cardinals. On another occasion in 1928 they caught a midnight train from Mathis to San Antonio to see the New York Yankees and the Brooklyn Dodgers play an exhibition game. They saw legends Tony Lazzeri, Lou Gehrig and Babe Ruth.

Jones attended high school in Mathis and graduated in 1931. He excelled in baseball and basketball. His basketball team played in the state tournament in Austin. He moved to Corpus Christi in 1935 where he got a job at Goodyear Tires and Rubber.

It was in Corpus Christi that Alton and Rosalie’s paths crossed. One fateful evening, he found himself at the Ordner home on Coleman Street. “After a short time in the house, Rosalie walked into the room without acknowledging anyone, sat down and started playing the piano,” he said of their first encounter. Not long after that, the couple went on their first date. They walked to the movies since he had no car. They saw each other as often as they could after that.

In 1937, Jones was diagnosed with tuberculosis and went to a sanatorium near San Angelo for treatment. He stayed for six months before returning to Corpus Christi. Before returning to the sanatorium, he asked Rosalie to be his wife. Her brother, Father Charles H. Ordner, performed the wedding ceremony at St. Patrick’s Cathedral.

Soon after the wedding she accompanied her husband back to the sanatorium for more treatment. After returning to Corpus Christi in 1940, Jones got a job at the Railway Express Agency. They borrowed $300 from her brother Albert to buy their first home in Corpus Christi where they had their first three children–David Charles Jones, William Cleveland Jones and Thomas Alton Jones.

In 1948, while still working for Railway Express Agency, the family moved to Alice where their only daughter, Rosalie Annie Jones, was born. They attended St. Elizabeth Church and sent their children to the parish’s school through the eighth grade, then to public school in Alice. Mother Rosalie was active in St. Elizabeth School, primarily helping in the cafeteria. She belonged to the Altar Society, was sacristan for the parish and made items such as bibs for the babies being baptized. Father Alton joined the Knights of Columbus in 1949. 

		Rosalie and Alton Jones in 2013 at their home in Austin. Contributed photo

In 1973 the family moved to Portland where they lived for 38 years, more than half of their married life. He joined the Portland Knights and she became a charter member of the Catholic Daughters and was also sacristan for the parish. Jones served for 64 years in the Knights holding the posts of Grand Knight, District Deputy, Faith Navigator in the Fourth Degree, and is a lifetime member. A scholarship has been set up in his honor.

The couple received a papal blessing for their 70th wedding anniversary in 2008.  In 2010 they moved to Austin to be near their daughter.

“You couldn’t have found a better role model for parents,” their son Tom Jones said. They have not only been role models to their children, but for everyone.  

(John Ahlers is a parishioner of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Parish in Portland.)