Irene Louise Jones was born April 28, 1922, at the family home near Slagle, Polk Co., MO, to Tom and Ida (Herms) Jones, the oldest of five children.
She passed away at age 92 on November 12 at Heisinger Bluffs Nursing Home in Jefferson City, MO.
When she was age 12, her family moved to near Polk, MO, where she attended high school in Hermitage, and then Goodson. She later attended Missouri Baptist Hospital School of Nursing in St. Louis, MO, graduating in 1948, as a Registered Nurse, her lifelong profession, taking off some time to raise her family.
On May 11, 1952, she married Gilmer Wallace Dehn in Rolla, MO. Gilmer was a County Agent. They had 4 children, and spent most of their married life living near Troy, MO. Both were very active in church and community life.
Irene was a member of the Church of Christ, attending for years at Troy, MO and at Bolivar, MO when living in these locations.
Irene enjoyed travel, having visited all 50 states and several foreign countries, and attending many Elderhostels for educational travel experiences. She also enjoyed genealogy, traveling with her sister Judy to ancestral villages of their Mother in the former East Germany.
Irene is survived by 4 children, Lydia Ann (David) Welch, Paul (Janet) Dehn, Steven Dehn, and David (Joan) Dehn, six grandchildren, Nathaniel and Travis Welch, Andrea and Jared Dehn, and Mariel and Julia Dehn, a sister, Judy (Lyndel) McKinney, a sister-in-law, Ruth Jones, and several nieces and nephews, as well as many other extended family and friends.
Irene was preceded in death by her parents, Tom & Ida (Herms) Jones, husband, Gilmer W. Dehn, her sister, Anna Lee Meredith, her brothers, Calvin Jones and Arnold Jones, a sister-in-law, Corene Jones, and two nephews, Edward and William Meredith.
Funeral services will be held at 3:00 PM, Saturday, November 15, 2014, at Pitts Chapel Bolivar, MO, with Pastor Darin Chappell officiating. Burial will follow at Payne Cemetery in Polk, MO, where she will be buried beside Gilmer. Visitation will be held one hour prior to the service, from 2:00 – 3:00 PM. Arrangements have been entrusted to Pitts Chapel Bolivar, MO.