Scarlot Lafon Williams Jones

Scarlot Lafon Williams Jones, 80, of Cleburne, Texas, passed away peacefully at home on September 25, 2026, with her loving daughter Rachael.

Scarlot was born on November 14, 1945, in Bosque County, Texas, to J. L. Williams and Winnie Oma Williams Barajas. She spent her early years growing up in Fort Worth before moving with her family to Cleburne when she was in elementary. She attended J.N. Long Elementary and Cleburne High School, where she began building the connections to her community that would remain a part of her life forever.

Her working life was as varied and hardworking as she was. Her first job was taking tickets at the Esquire Theater in downtown Cleburne. After high school, she worked as a secretary for the Price Foods family in Fort Worth, known for Price’s Pimento Cheese. She spent over 19 years at Walls Industries, running patterns in the Marking Department. But it was during the final chapter of her career that mom found perhaps her most meaningful work. She became a Special Needs Teacher’s Aide for Cleburne Independent School District, working devotedly for several elementary schools. She loved those children as though they were her own. Her warmth, patience, and genuine affection influenced countless students and created lasting friendships with teachers, staff, and families. Her years in Cleburne ISD were a reflection of something that had been true throughout her entire life: Mom loved children, and those children felt seen and valued by her.

But above everything else, her most important job in life was a MOTHER. Her five children were the center of her world. As a single mom, she faced the challenges of raising five children on her own, but she met those challenges with determination, sacrifice, and an extraordinary amount of love. She devoted herself to protecting her children, caring for them, encouraging them, and making sure they knew they were loved. Her children were not simply a part of her life-they were her life.

That love only grew as her family grew. She poured the same devotion into her grandchildren and, in more recent years, her great-grandchildren. She treasured her family and found joy in watching each new generation grow. Those who knew Scarlot best will remember that enormous heart, the way she could make you feel cared for, the way she worried about the people she loved, and the way her family always remained at the center of her thoughts.

Scarlot also knew how to enjoy life. She loved the beach. Galveston, Corpus Christi, Hawaii, Puerto Vallarta, Acapulco, Ixtapa-if there was sand, sunshine, and sea, mom wanted to be there. From May through September, she wore a permanent Texas-summer tan.

She also loved the music of the 1960s, and perhaps nothing brought her more joy than The Beatles. Even long after dementia had taken and distorted so many of her memories, when she listened to the Beatles Channel, she was immediately transported to her teen years - a time of friends, family, laughter, love, and happy memories.

Scarlot’s life cannot be measured simply by the jobs she held or the years she lived. Her greatest legacy is found in the people she loved and the people who loved her in return. She gave her children a mother's determination, her grandchildren and great-grandchildren a grandmother's unconditional love, and countless children at Cleburne schools the gift of knowing that someone cared about them.

She is preceded in death by her father, J. L. Williams; her mother, Winnie Oma Williams Barajas; her stepfather, Tirso Barajas; her brother, Gary Williams; her sister-in-law, Mary Williams; and her beloved son, Reggie Jones.

She leaves behind a family that carries her love forward: her daughter, Rachael Wickery and husband Ron; her sons, Rebel Jones and wife Diana, Roman Jones and wife Sharon, and Ryan Jones and wife Karen; 12 grandchildren; 11 great-grandchildren; and numerous nieces, nephews, extended family members, and friends who were blessed to know her.

Scarlot spent her life taking care of others. She loved fiercely, worried deeply, laughed freely, and gave more of herself than she ever asked in return. Her greatest gift was simply the love she gave so freely.

And that love will always remain.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that those who wish to honor Scarlot consider doing so by showing a little extra kindness to a child, spending time with someone they love, listening to an old favorite song, or-if you are lucky enough to be near one-putting your feet in the sand and letting the sound of the ocean remind you of her.