Thomas D. "Tom" Jones, 82, of Capron, died suddenly Sunday evening, July 22, 2012. He was a caring and generous man who embraced the diversity of God's creation. Born to farmers in Sarona, Wisconsin, Tom's mother was a first generation German immigrant and father a rural mail carrier. He was the youngest of seven siblings. Tom served in the Air Force in Texas and Wyoming during the Korean Conflict and graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Tom married Phyllis Green in 1956, a strong woman from a family of farmers and teachers in Wisconsin's Kickapoo Valley. Tom and Phyllis were best friends and the most solid of partners, first sharing their lives in southern Wisconsin, then moving to Capron, Illinois in 1968. Tom's career focused on banking, lending and insurance, always with an interest in helping people. Although his life embodied community service (including Boone County Fire Protection District #1, Boone County Soil and Water Conservation District, Boone County Housing Authority), in the last few years his main joys were family, flower gardening, and taking kids to the Shriners Hospital for Children in Chicago. Together, beginning in early 2003, Tom and Phyllis made 285 trips to the Shrine Hospital, safely delivering children and their families for free orthopedic care. Many of those trips were also to deliver blankets, made by Capron Lutheran members and the Project Linus Wisconsin Heights Chapter, for comfort to those families. Among Tom's special gifts were his ability to draw anyone into conversation and his incredible support and encouragement to family and friends, whether it be a face-to-face conversation or through email and cards.Tom is survived by his wife Phyllis, daughter Sue Jones (Deb Flanders) of Madison, WI; son Greg Jones of Davenport, IA; son Jim Jones (Casey Tomala) of Chicago, IL; granddaughters Keelyn Jones (Brad Davies) and Leesha Jones and their mother Barb Watterson, and great-grandson Dominik, all of Eldridge, IA; sister- and brother-in-law Betty and Spence Zillmer of Middleton, WI; and many other Jones and Green family members.

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests memorial gifts to the Shriners Hospital for Children, 2211 North Oak Park Ave, Chicago, IL 60707.