The Baughn Family

Betty Jones, 'fry lady,' loving mom

Betty Cordelia Biddle Jones was known as the "fry lady" at the McDonald's restaurant in Richwood, where she worked from the restaurant's opening to just a few years ago.

But her son, Allen "A.J" Jones, knew her as a loving and compassionate mother.

He recalled the time when he was a kid and collided with a dog while riding his bicycle.

"I had the misfortune of riding a 10-speed bicycle when a dog came out of a driveway," said A.J, of Walton.

"I broadsided a collie dog. My yellow coat was just red on the front. She asked me, 'What in the world happened to you?' It looked like somebody whopped me with a ball bat. But she did the motherly thing: cleaned me up and iced my lip."

Mrs. Jones died Thursday at the Florence Park Care Center following a bout with cancer. She was 79.

Born in Petersburg, she moved to Burlington at a young age.

She married Winston R. Jones in 1947 and the couple celebrated their 50th anniversary before he died in 1998. They raised their children on a farm in Gallatin County.

"Betty was just a very quiet person, but when she had something to say, she said it," said her sister, Mary Lou Jackson, of Hebron. She called Mrs. Jones her best friend.

The sisters enjoyed many long-distance telephone conversations while Jackson lived in Stockton, Calif. But it was Mrs. Jones' visit to the Golden State that Jackson says she will always cherish.

"We went to the antique shops in the foothills," said Jackson. "We had such a great time."

Mrs. Jones liked to shop at the Florence Mall with another sister, Evelyn Beach, of Burlington.

Mrs. Jones also enjoyed gardening, quilting, sewing and playing cards. After her children grew up and her husband sold the family farm, Mrs. Jones worked at a meat packing plant in Walton and the McDonald's in Richwood.

She was a member of Concord Baptist Church and enjoyed gathering with her siblings.

"Even though we were a big family, we stayed close and always had a lot of love for each other," said Beach.

Survivors include another son, Bruce Jones of Peninsula, Ohio; a stepson, Rick Jones of Lafayette, Ind.; brothers, Paul Biddle, Russell "Buster" Biddle, Galen Biddle, Carl Biddle, and Ernie Biddle, all of Burlington, Robert Biddle of Florence, and Kenny Biddle of Glencoe; two other sisters, Laura Lee Wagner and Helen Smoot, both of Burlington; and two grandchildren.

Services will be at 11 a.m. Monday at Chambers and Grubbs Funeral Home, Florence. Visitation will be from 4 to 8 p.m. Sunday at the funeral home. Burial will be in Florence Cemetery.