VELMA DEAN COTTON TYSON JONES passed away at the impressive age of 87 on September 5, 2021. Born March 21, 1934 in Todd County, to Otha Richard Cotton and Sarah Cordelia Sherrod Cotton, Velma was raised in Greenville. She was preceded in death by her parents, sister Margaret Cotton (Pascal) Lee and brother Carl (Jean) Cotton.
Survivors include her son Richard Tyson; daughter-in-law Kathy (Thomas) Tyson; granddaughters Hillary and Melissa; great-grandchildren Jayden and Roselle; nephew Darrel Lee and niece Phyllis Lee Davenport.
Velma was a hard worker and her various careers included making vacuum tubes for General Electric, a nutritionist at a nursing facility, and a seamstress at a factory that made Levi jackets until they closed, sending the jobs to a place south of the U.S. border. One of her favorite jobs was as a cook at a big boat dock on Kentucky Lake. Velma was an amateur artist, with her landscape paintings typically done using the colors of black and white. A professional artist once said her painting style was quite unique and the artistry was breathtaking.
Velma was quick to laugh and unbelievably funny. She said “No, thank you” to her only child signing up for Boy Scouts because she was afraid he’d “get on a snake” while outdoors. He still grew into a manly man who can build fires and tie knots, and he’s not afraid of snakes. Velma loved reading mysteries and Kentucky ghost stories. She loved animals and once – when she was carrying a kitten around in the crook of her arm – her family jokingly told her she was like Coco the gorilla. She laughed and said, “She’s spoiled. I can’t get rid of her!”
Velma moved to Lexington, in 1995 to help care for her granddaughters. Those girls were the absolute joy of her life and she doted on them. Velma loved traveling, particularly family trips to Disney World, Niagara Falls, and the Smoky Mountains. Survivors include a son Richard Tyson; daughter-in-law Kathy (Thomas) Tyson; granddaughters Hillary and Melissa; great-grandchildren Jayden and Roselle; nephew Darrel Lee and niece Phyllis Lee Davenport.
An online guestbook is available at https://www.legacy.com/…/name/velma-jones-obituary. A celebration of life will be held next spring when all of her loving family can gather to remember her beautiful spirit, her amazing sense of humor, and together cherish her time in this world. Her remains will be interred at the cemetery of Friendship Baptist Church outside of Greenville, where she attended church for many years.
In lieu of flowers, please get vaccinated in Velma’s memory. Her family was unable to visit in her final months because the nursing facility was locked down due to the preventable surge of Covid infections. #VaxxedForVelma
