Brenda Marlene Jones of Highland Haven passed away May 10, 2025
Brenda Marlene Jones was born in Dalhart, Texas, on June 21, 1955, to W.O. Harrell and Florence Harrell formerly of Wills Point, Texas. She passed from us on Saturday, May 10, 2025.
Brenda was the devoted wife and best friend of Bruce Jones of Highland Haven, Texas. She was a loving mother, grandmother, sister, and friend whose warmth and generosity touched everyone who knew her.
She is survived by her son, Brian David Walker, and his wife Pam of Sherman, Texas. Brenda was blessed with grandchildren Haley Billmeier and her husband Matt of Fort Cavazos; Heidi Walker of Gainesville; and Ethan Lawson and his wife Ashley of Whitesboro, along with their children, Stevie and Taylor. Through Pam, she was also a grandmother to Rachel Garnett of Houston, Nikki Kincy of Houston, and Casey Kincy of Sherman.
Brenda’s daughter, Sara Dawn Barnes, and her husband Jason of Van Alstyne, Texas, also survive her, along with their daughters, Mallorie and Maggie.
She was a stepmother to Abby Davis and her husband Tim of Nashville, Tennessee, and their children, Collyn and Bryce; Adria Ann Spaugh and her husband Daniel of Willis, Texas, and their sons, Wade and Zane; and Ashlynn Jones of Magnolia, Texas.
Brenda is also survived by her beloved sisters, Lola Pylant and her husband Dick, and Ava McCullough and her husband Lloyd, all of Wills Point, Texas.
Her legacy lives on in the many lives she touched through her kindness, strength, and unwavering love for her family.
Pallbearers will be Ethan “Bubba” Lawson, Matt Billmeier, Nash DeMoure, Shane McCaslin, Kolton Adams, and Kash Adams.
If you knew Brenda—and you’re here to celebrate her life—you’re probably already smiling. That’s the Brenda effect. She brought humor, warmth, and a touch of mischief wherever she went.
A friend to everyone and a force to be reckoned with, Brenda graduated from Slaton High School in 1973. Her high school years are remembered less for academic accolades and more for legendary pranks—like releasing pigeons in the auditorium and breaking into the school (more than once) on a dare. Her “close relationship” with Principal Mr. Kerr could best be described as … complicated, but affectionate. They were, as she’d say, bosom buddies—mostly because he couldn’t get rid of her.
Brenda’s work life was just as colorful. Her career spanned administration, HR, accounting, payroll, legal analysis, and secretarial roles across industries from manufacturing and oil & gas to the medical field. She was equally respected by the janitor and the CEO, and probably had lunch with both. Her workplace stories were the stuff of legend: being pinned under a wall of filing cabinets, tripping over nothing in the parking lot (in broad daylight), and fearlessly holding her own in confrontations that made others back away slowly.
She didn’t curse—at least not technically. Brenda spoke fluent trucker, sprinkled with sailor dialect, and occasionally flavored with a construction worker’s accent. You always knew what she meant … whether you wanted to or not.
Outside of work, Brenda was all heart. She adored her family, her Sassy, fishing trips, and water sports with the people she loved. She could mix a mean margarita—when she remembered to hold the plastic spoon and remove the string from the ice bag. And she could turn any gathering into a party, whether it was around a campfire or at Reverend Jim’s, cold one in hand.
She laughed hardest at her own misadventures—like tumbling into a culvert while rushing to a pig show or flipping a riding lawnmower in someone else’s yard. Only Brenda.
In true Brenda fashion, she had one final request: that someone take a flower arrangement from her casket and throw it into the crowd to see who’s next.
She’d want us to remember her not with tears, but with laughter—the louder the better.
In lieu of flowers, please consider supporting a memorial being created by Brenda’s grandchildren. This tribute will honor her love, faith, and the special bond she shared with them.
Venmo: @Brenda-Jones-618
“Her children arise and call her blessed.”—Proverbs 31:28