Laurene May Yeager-Jones

With our hearts heavy, Laurene May Yeager-Jones, 93, entered into Heaven on Aug. 10, 2017, at 9 a.m. as she was surrounded by her loving family. She was a lifetime resident of Berthoud, Colo. She survived her loving husband of 68 happy and loving years of marriage, Donald E. Jones.

Laurene is survived by their daughter Donna Lee Jones-Hoeft (Brookings, Ore.), grandchildren; Laurene Idell Broughton-Rylands, Sparks, Nev., Donald (Dobie) Broughton, Aurora, Colo., and Ronald Shannon Wagner, Berthoud, Colo.., great grandchildren; Kalia Burket, Sean and Stephen Hanley, Sparks, Nev., Lisa and Bryan Broughton, Aurora, Colo., Kylee Wagner, Reno, Nev., Dylan Wagner, Berthoud, Colo.; and five great-great grandchildren.

Born in Berthoud on Jan. 14, 1924, Laurene was one of six children born to William and Katie Yeager, who were first-generation Germans from Russia. As children of farmers who still did things the old way, she and her siblings learned the discipline of hard work it took to help run a farm the way her dad needed it to be run. Despite the harsh requirements of farm life, her parents demanded all their children attend school and graduate. All but one other person in her class eventually dropped out of school to help their family take care of their farms. Laurene was one of two in her class to have graduated from her one-room high school Mead, Colo., in 1942.

After graduating high school, she moved to Denver and found a job working for Mountain States telephone and telegraph through much of WWII then, during the last two years of the war, she joined the Womens Aircorps, where she utilized the experience she obtained in Denver working in communications. She was stationed at Peterson Field in Colorado Springs in 1944 for the duration of the war. After the war was over, she met the love of her life, Donald Edward Jones, in Berthoud, and they married on June 1, 1947, becoming Laurene Mae Jones and celebrating 68 years of marriage until her beloved passed away on Sept. 15, 2015.

In 1955-1956, Don, Laurene and Donna worked steadfastly to build their own home on Bimson Avenue, which has been the home to which everyone in the family comes to enjoy great family times.

In 1963 she worked at Scientific Crystals for four years, then at Hewlett Packard in Loveland for 11 years (where she stated she made about $2 per day) before she and Donald became owners of Berthoud Oil Company, owning and operating a bulk plant and gas station in Berthoud (where Hays Market now sits), and a bulk plant and gas station in Longmont called Francis Street Exxon.

Laurene primarily operated and managed Francis Street Exxon before they both retired in 1985 and lived a long and wonderful retirement traveling and enjoying time with family.

Funeral services will be held at 10 a.m., Tuesday, Aug. 15, 2017, at Immanuel Lutheran Church. Viewing will take place from 3-5 p.m., Monday at Kibbey-Fishburn Funeral Home. Interment, Berthoud Greenlawn Cemetery.