Those who knew the late Mike Jones would say his quick wit gave them countless hours of joy and laughter.
The Bay Springs, Mississippi, native always had a giving spirit but a lifelong struggle with substance abuse and homelessness meant the most he could offer friends and family was his charming personality.
And that was enough, they’d say.
But six months before his death from congestive heart failure in May 2024, a healthy inheritance allowed Jones to share in more tangible ways. In addition to helping members of his community financially, Jones made a $200,000 gift in support of the Blair E. Batson Tower renovation project at Children’s of Mississippi, the pediatric hospital located at the University of Mississippi Medical Center.
Once renovations are complete, the four medical-surgical units in Batson Tower will match the facilities of the Kathy and Joe Sanderson Tower, which opened in 2020. The Batson Tower’s first five floors opened in 1997; floors six and seven were added in 2004.
Additional support making this transformation possible includes a $1.5 million commitment from the Joseph C. Bancroft Charitable and Educational Fund of McComb, Mississippi, another $1.5 million from Priscilla and David O’Donnell of Ridgeland, Mississippi, and $1.5 million from Hogs for the Cause, a pediatric brain cancer non-profit based in New Orleans, Louisiana. These donations are specifically earmarked for the renovation of medical-surgical units, each encompassing an entire floor of the Batson Tower.
Additionally, another floor is being funded by Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals’ corporate partners and programs.
Recent renovations also include improvements to the Children’s of Mississippi Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders on the ground floor of the Batson Tower, which were made possible through the generous lead gift of Pat and Jim Coggin of Jackson, Mississippi.
UMMC will recognize Jones’ gift with a nurses’ station named in his honor.
“Children’s of Mississippi has been able to enhance the care provided to the state’s children because of the continued support of private donations from generous benefactors like Mr. Jones,” said Dr. Mary Taylor, Suzan B. Thames Chair and professor of pediatrics. “His gift and others will enable Children’s of Mississippi to continue to be a beacon of hope for our patients, families and providers.”
Joe McNeil, also of Bay Springs — executor of Jones’ estate, his longtime friend and ultimate caregiver — said his buddy would feel grateful that his gift is appreciated.
“He just had a great heart and loved kids,” McNeil said. “There’s a lot of kids here in town that went to Batson to get help, and he knew about that. He told me, ‘You know, I ain’t got a whole lot left, but I want to donate what I’ve got to Children’s, so I can at least help some kids. I’ll do something good, you know, before I leave this world.’”
Jones did more good than he knew. Even when he was sleeping under a bridge in New Orleans, he would share anything he had with others. And, when he received his inheritance, his generosity grew exponentially.
For example, not long before he died, Jones asked McNeil to use some of his inheritance to buy him a Martin guitar — an instrument McNeil himself had often coveted.
“He said, ‘I’m gonna learn to play the guitar like you before I leave this world,’” McNeil recalled, adding that he found his friend a 1972 Martin D-28 acoustic guitar and took it to him. A few days later, Jones took the guitar to McNeil’s house and asked him to play it for him.
“He loved hearing me play country music, Jimmy Buffett and especially John Prine,” McNeil said. “I played about an hour. Then he got ready to leave and I said, ‘Don’t forget your guitar.’ He said, ‘That ain’t mine; I got it for you. All you’ve done for me all these years … you deserve it.’”
Jones lived life to the fullest, in his own way, and loved making people happy.
He was captain of the debate team and valedictorian of the Bay Springs High School Class of 1969. He also was an accomplished equestrian who won many competitions with his American Quarter Horse, Topal.
After high school, he received a full scholarship to the University of Southern Mississippi, where he completed two years.
A member of First Baptist Church in Bay Springs, Jones was a voracious reader of Hemingway and other classics and had impressive knowledge about musical artists and specific songs.
“He didn’t have any children; just always had a soft spot in his heart for kids,” McNeil said. “He just wanted to do something to help them.”
To support the University of Mississippi Medical Center, visit http://www.umc.edu/givenow or contact Victoria Stein at (601-984-1135) or vstein1@umc.edu
By Bill Dabney/UM Foundation