Dessie Jones

Dessie Guthery Jones, born September 19, 1945, in Blanchard, Oklahoma, passed away on August 31, 2026, at Baptist Hospital in Conway, Arkansas.

Dessie lived a life centered around faith, family, and serving others. Alongside her beloved David, she devoted many years to missionary work, serving both in Mexico and throughout the United States. Her heart for children and families also led her to serve as a house mother at Southern Christian Home in Morrilton, Arkansas, where she poured her love, guidance, and faith into the lives of many.

Family to Dessie was never limited by blood. She is survived by her son, Timothy David Guthery, as well as the many women she lovingly called her daughters and the multitude of grandchildren who knew and loved her as family. If Dessie claimed you as one of hers, you were hers—and she loved you accordingly.

Dessie was also an avid gardener with a special gift for growing the most beautiful flowers. She could happily spend hours talking about her garden, telling you what was blooming, what she had planted, and what she planned to grow next. But as much as she loved her flowers, she loved talking about her family even more.

Dessie later married her second husband, Dr. Arthur Jones, and they shared nine years of marriage. They enjoyed traveling together when they were able, although declining health eventually limited their adventures and the things they had hoped to experience together.

She was preceded in death by her parents; her brothers, Louis Steelman and Wayne Steelman; her sisters, Leveda Nickels, Nadine Little, and Willi Hall, all of Oklahoma; her beloved David Guthery; and her second husband, Dr. Arthur Jones.

She is survived by her sister, Melba Orme of Anadarko, Oklahoma; her son, Timothy; and the extraordinary extended family she gathered and loved throughout her life.

Dessie will be laid to rest in Dibble, Oklahoma, beside David, reuniting them in their final resting place.

Her life was one of planting seeds—in gardens, in faith, and in people. The flowers she loved will continue to bloom, but her greatest legacy can be found in the many lives she nurtured, the children she loved as her own, and the family she created wherever God placed her.

She loved deeply, served faithfully, and leaves behind far more family than any family tree could ever hold.