Gloria A. Jones passed away on Wednesday, October 1st, 2025.  She was born on March 20, 1944 in Jackson, TN, and was 81 years old at the time of her passing.  Gloria was raised in Cairo, IL and Cape Girardeau, MO.  She and her husband of 56 years, Michael A. Jones, graduated from Central High School in 1962.  After graduating from Southeast Missouri State University in 1966, Mike and Gloria married that summer on Aug. 22.

In 1975, after Mike served his country in the Army during the Vietnam War, they moved to Springfield where Gloria began a distinguished career as an educator.  After spending a year in the Nixa Public Schools teaching Kindergarten, she joined the Springfield Public School System in 1976 where she spent the next 30 years of her career.  Gloria taught nearly every grade in Elementary Education along the way, although she enjoyed Kindergarten and the younger grades the most.  She often ran into former students out and about in Springfield and they would often comment about the positive impact she had on them as students.  She eventually obtained her Masters Degree in Education which helped her eventually earn a promotion into the Curriculum Department of SPS.  After retiring from SPS, she also taught Education classes at Missouri State University.  She received many awards for her service to her students, but her most cherished recognition was being named an Outstanding Educator in Social Studies by the State of Missouri Education Department.  Teaching was her passion, and she was one of the best to ever do it.

In her retirement years, Gloria enjoyed life at their lake house with Mike and their family.  After Mike's passing in 2022, she moved to Prairie Village, KS to be closer to family.  Gloria felt that she was truly blessed with her husband, three sons, and eight grandchildren.  Mike preceded Gloria in death in 2022, but she is survived by her son Matt, his wife Beverly, and their children Carson and Paige; her son Brett and his fiancé Amy, and his children Beckham, Natalie, Courtney, and Griffin; and by her son Scott, his wife Kelli, and their children Caleb and Kendall.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Campbell United Methodist Church of Springfield, MO, or to the charity of their choice.

Visitation will be held from 4:00 - 6:00 PM on Thursday, October 9, 2025 at Gorman-Scharpf Funeral Home. Graveside Service will be at 9:00 AM on Friday, October 10 in Missouri Veterans Cemetery.