It is with broken hearts that we announce the passing of our Assistant Chief of Police, Major William “Bill” Jones after a short battle with cancer. Major Jones passed peacefully at his home surrounded by loved ones on August 2, 2023.
Chief of Police Direk Hunt stated, “There is a huge hole in our blue family. When you work with someone as long as we have, you become family. We grieve with Paula and Amy and the rest of his family. He was a mentor to so many officers both in the police and fire departments. Not only within our departments but across the state. His loss is felt by all of us. He was a wealth of knowledge and experience which the loss of will be felt for years.”
There is a saying that at the end of one’s life, the thing that matters most is the dash between the dates. Major Jones has made that dash matter. He lived a life of service. Major Jones served his church and God as an Elder at Immanuel Lutheran Church; as well as mentoring many young people over the years. He served his community as not only the Assistant Chief of Police but as an Assistant Fire Chief and the City of Perryville’s Emergency Manager. His favorite days at work were when he got to interact with children. Whether it was going to eat lunch with the students at Immanuel Lutheran School while in uniform, giving a fire presentation, taking kids shopping for Shop with a Cop, or a firehouse open house; he was all smiles.
Among the many things Major Jones will be remembered for, he will lovingly be remembered as a foodie. He knew all the best places to eat, not only in this state but you could name just about any major city, and he would tell you where to go to get the best meal, and he was never wrong about it. Even if it was just the best bologna and cheese sandwich. Major Jones would love to tell stories about loading up the family to drive to Kansas City or Iowa for the day because they were hungry for a particular meal or restaurant. To him, a good meal was never too far to drive to.
During his professional career, Major Jones started serving the citizens of Perryville in 1983 as a Reserve Officer. In 1984 he became a full-time Patrol Officer with the city. Major Jones rose through the ranks quickly, becoming a Sergeant in 1986 and moving up to his current rank of Major in 1988. During his tenure at the police department, he was also an Evidence Technician and held the title of Interim Chief of Police twice. In addition, he trained hundreds of officers during the 1990s at the SEMO Law Enforcement Academy in crime scene collection and investigations. Major Jones has been a trainer for the fire department and in emergency management fields for just as long, training others throughout the state in fire fighting and disaster preparedness, mitigation, and recovery.
Major Jones was involved in many organizations throughout the State of Missouri and nationally. Some of these include the President of the board of Cape Girardeau Area Fire Training Library, Missouri Peace Officers Association, Missouri Fire Chiefs Association, Firefighters Association of Missouri, International Association of Arson Investigators, International Association of Fire Chiefs, Missouri IAAI, Missouri Emergency Management Association, Ozark Firefighters Association, Professional Fire and Fraud Investigators Association.
At Major Jones’ request, he will not be having a fire or police memorial service. He felt at the end it was not about what he did for a living but how he had lived his life for Christ. Service details have not been determined at this time, but we will share them once they are announced.
We take solace in believing a man of faith and service such as Major Jones was surely guided home by St. Michael and St. Florian themselves. We are inviting you to share with us on our Facebook page your favorite Major Jones story. We would love to be able to share these with his family and be able to revisit these when we are missing him.