Thomas Baldwin Jones

Thomas Baldwin Jones, age 97, died on February 14, 2024. He was born in Milwaukee on November 29, 1926, the son of D. Carlton and Dorothy Bunce Jones. 

Upon graduating from Port Washington High School, Tom joined the Navy and served on the USS Ariel during World War II as an Electronic Technician’s mate. He received his BA of Music at the UW, then a Masters of Music from Yale. Tom and his wife, Janet, became the music department at Oconto High School where he was the band teacher for 13 years. He then received a PhD at UW in the Philosophy of Education. Tom created and introduced Philosophy as a regular class at Madison West HS, and was a beloved teacher there for the remainder of his career. 

In retirement, Tom wrote his book “Decoding and Encoding English Words.”. He tutored dyslexic students free of charge for many more years. Tom was also an accomplished musician/pianist. Tom also composed numerous musical pieces. He was a member of Dale Heights Presbyterian Church, and served as a member of its session, and for a time, as the organist. 

Tom was a devoted and loving father, and was preceded in death by his wife of 67 years, Janet. He is survived by his son, Bruce (Madison); daughter, Carol; son-in-law, Steve (San Diego); son, Alan (Minneapolis); grandson, Steve; granddaughter, Stephanie; and grandson-in-law, Andrew (all of San Diego). 

A memorial and interment of ashes will be held at Dale Heights Church, located at 5501 University Ave. in Madison, on Saturday, June 22, at 1:00PM.