Amos Jones is 92, but he vividly remembers the day he cried out to God. It was Labor Day 1955. He and his late wife Eva and the first two of seven children, one an infant and one a toddler, went to visit Jones’ mother-in-law for the holiday.

“I lost my house in a fire,” he said. “I lost everything, everything. I called on the Lord, I said, Lord have mercy on us. Something stuck in my heart that day. That’s when I started putting God first.”

Jones’ faith changed the way he responded to people and life’s challenges from that day on, but it didn’t prevent life’s challenges including a recent one involving a second loss of property and a forgiveness that was only made possible by the grace of God, Jones said.

“In 1955, when I found a house and was finally able to move back to DeQuincy, the fire department and the Ford Company gave me everything I needed to move back in,” he said. “I guess that’s when I fell in love with this community.”

He attended church, first at St. Martin de Porres and then at Our Lady of LaSalette. He became involved with the Chamber of Commerce after he opened his own body shop. He became involved with the Acts of the Apostle organization and was a founding member of the Knights of Columbus in DeQuincy.

Earlier this year, Jones founded a 501c3 organization, DeQuincy Community Acts Foundation. The name comes from the Bible’s New Testament book of Acts.

“My vision is to build a Senior Center for DeQuincy,” he said.

The late John Matheson, local hospital administrator, had allowed the Calcasieu Council On Aging (CCOA) to use one of his centers in DeQuincy. However, it was destroyed by the hurricanes and will not be restored.

The DeQuincy News and Cameron Parish owner/publisher, Jeffra Wise DeViney said this about Jones. “He’s already built a KC Hall selling rifle raffle tickets. He can do it.”

On Sept. 26, DeQuincy Community Acts Foundation had its first fundraiser. Over 10,000 people attended. (DeQuincy’s population is around 3,000.)

On Saturday, Dec. 18, at 7 p.m., the DeQuincy Community Acts Foundation is inviting the public to help make a DeQuincy Senior Center a reality. For $10, attendees will enjoy music, gumbo and bidding on silent auction items and the chance to win a door prize.

“Somebody has been helping me, and it’s got to be God,” Jones said. “He lifted me up. I know that. People have been a blessing to me and I can’t sit down. I made a promise to God that I will serve him as long as I live, as long as He will let me. You don’t retire when there’s a good cause, when there is still somebody in need. It’s the right thing to do and I have found peace in doing that.”