Reginald L Jones

Reginald L. Jones died Friday, June 20, 2025, at the age of 83, at the Southwestern Vermont Medical Center in Bennington.

Reg was born September 20, 1941 in Bennington, VT, the oldest child and only son of William H. Jones and Rhoda (Lyons) Jones. The family lived in Springfield, VT and Jackson Heights, NY, before moving to Norwood, PA, in 1947. Reg’s only sibling, Virginia, was born in 1950 and in 1953 the Jones family moved to Wallingford, PA.

After completing high school at Nether Providence H.S. in 1959, Reg continued his education at Dartmouth College where he earned a BA in Economics as a member of the class of ’63. He served in the U.S. Army for two years before entering graduate school. Reg earned a Masters Degree in Education from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.

Reg returned to Nether Providence H.S. as a faculty member and taught U.S. Civics. He was very invested in the students; chaperoning trips abroad, working with the model United Nations, coaching JV basketball, and sponsoring the ski club. In the summertime, Reg worked at Green Mountain Racetrack.

In 1969 Reg married Nancy Kowalick. After 15 years in Pennsylvania, they moved to Bennington, VT. Reg and Nancy divorced in 2000. Reg held several interesting jobs in Vermont including selling computers, teaching computers at Monument Elementary, as a sales rep for SofCo, and as a Park Ranger at Marsh-Billings Rockefeller National Historical Park in Woodstock, the only National Park in Vermont. His last position before retirement was at the Covered Bridge Museum.

Reg found a home in four different churches depending on where he was residing. At Lake St. Catherine it was the Wells United Methodist Church; in Bennington, The Old First Church; in Pennsylvania, Wallingford Presbyterian Church; and in Florida, the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Vero Beach. He formed lasting friendships and enjoyed fellowship with each church family.

In his retirement, Reg continued to enjoy his two favorite interests, theater and women’s college basketball. One year he attended 62 live plays or musicals. Every year he traveled to cheer on his two favorite teams, Dartmouth and UVM. Travel by car was always an adventure for Reg as he visited family in Pennsylvania on trips to his condo in Vero Beach, FL, or enjoyed an annual excursion to Cooperstown from the family’s cottage on Lake St. Catherine in Vermont. He was a member of the Modern Woodmen of America, the Wells Historical Society, and the Poultney St. David’s Society.

Reg is survived by his sister, Jinny, and her husband, Don Heilala, of Newtown Square, PA. Also surviving are his niece, Christine Burk and her husband Sam, of Swarthmore, PA, and their children, Alexa, Sam Jr., and Owen; and nephew, Wayne Heilala, and his wife, Alexis, of Media, PA, and their sons, Phineas and Wesley.

A memorial service is planned for Monday, July 7, at 11 AM at the White Chapel, 2119 Chapel Road, Bennington, VT, and graveside at the White Chapel Cemetery immediately following. A luncheon will be held at the Old First Church Barn, 1 Monument Circle, Bennington, VT, at 12:15 PM.

Donations may be made to: National Parks Conservation Association (member ID No. 058823378) or The Old First Church Capital Campaign to Perform Major Preservation Work.