Christophe Emanuel Jones didn’t have much family and just a small group of friends, but his visitation service Tuesday drew a roomful of strangers honoring the Elgin man’s life and his service in the U.S. Army.
The Symonds-Madison Funeral Home in Elgin learned about Jones and stepped in to handle the services for the 63-year-old man as part of their nonprofit Operation LOVE (Love Our Veterans Elgin), which conducts funerals for local vets who have no family members in the area and won’t have a service without their intervention.
Funeral home owner Daniel Symonds asked the community to honor Jones at the wake they held Tuesday and at his Wednesday burial with military honors at Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery in Elwood.
Members of Rolling Thunder, a nonprofit veterans advocacy group, attended the visitation and provided a motorcycle procession ride for the funeral.
“We are his family now,” Symonds said during the wake.
Elgin resident Corey Battle was one of those attended. He didn’t know Jones, but he wanted to show his respect.
“I felt it was something I needed to be down here at this moment and be part of this,” Battle said.
Jones, who died on Feb. 23, was born in Detroit, Michigan, to Hubert and Estelle Jones, according to his obituary. No survivors were listed although a cousin has since been in touch with Symonds.
Jones served in the U.S. Army from 1981 to 1984 and reached the rank of Specialist 4 before being honorably discharged.
It’s not clear when he moved to Elgin, but he worked at the Grand Victoria Casino for about nine years.
“He brought out the good and bad in me,” said his boss Cyndy Summers, eliciting a few laughs from his former coworkers. “Chris loved music. He talked about guitars and piano all day. I did get work out of him, but his passion revolved around his music.”
Jones “always had a smile for everybody and a good word for everybody,” Summers said. “He was probably one of the nicest people I’ve ever met.”
Summers found out she was Jones’ emergency contact when she got the call that he had died. She was shocked by the news because he was active and was always riding around town on one of his three bikes.
She and his co-workers knew that he was a veteran and shared the information with the Kane County Coroner’s Office and Elgin Police Department, which led to Symonds holding Jones’ services.
“I want to thank everybody for coming and saying goodbye to my friend,” Summers said.
Rich Wagner, owner of Rediscover Records in downtown Elgin, said Jones was a frequent customer.
“He had a passion for music and listening to music. We’d always talk about different bands and music,” Wagner said.
The two also shared an interest in cycling, and Jones often rode his bike to the store. Wagner expected to see him when the weather started getting better, and then he learned of his death.
“I thought, ‘Oh, man,’” Wagner said, his voice quieter. “I’ll think about him often.”
He said he plans to have a small memorial at this store for Jones, who also rebuilt guitars and owned a treasured Les Paul guitar that he refurbished and cherished.
Prayers at the visitation were led by the Rev. Pastor Patrick Parks, senior pastor of the Second Baptist Church of Elgin, followed by a bagpipe performance and a military resolution and acknowledgment.
Xanthia Hicks, co-chair of Second Baptist Church of Elgin’s Veterans Ministry, read a resolution. “We come with heavy hearts but also gratitude,” noting that Jones answered a call larger than himself when he chose to enlist in the Army, where he learned the values of discipline, courage, loyalty and perseverance.
“Those values did not end when his military service concluded,” she said. “He carried those lessons into friendship and his community. He showed us what it meant to do the right thing even when it was hard, to keep going when the road was long and to look out for others along the way,” Hicks said.
Jones was someone who laughed, cared deeply and showed up when needed, Hicks said. “He lived with purpose. … We honor you. We thank you. We will remember you.”
Gloria Casas is a freelance reporter for The Courier-News.
