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88-year-old retired colonel keeps young through work

Closure at Fort Lawton will leave him with extra time

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Everyone wonders what the secret of staying young is, but who actually knows? "The secret is keeping active and having the satisfaction of doing things to help people," said Samuel Jones, 88, a retired colonel who voluntarily joined the Army in 1942 to fight in WWII. He spent three years in an infantry unit in Italy fighting the war. While there he met his wife, Emma Serafina Ferrari-Scacco.

Jones' first encounter with Fort Lewis came in 1948 and then again in 1954, after he'd been commissioned. In 1960, he was assigned to Fort Lawton in Seattle. In 1963, Jones became eligible for retirement; however, he elected not to retire and instead joined the Army Reserve and served as a dual-status Department of the Army civilian employee. 

By 1967, Jones was assigned to be the adjutant general of the 124th Army Reserve Command at Fort Lawton, and by 1973 he was appointed deputy chief of staff for personnel. In 1978, Jones officially retired from the Army; in 2001, at age 77, he retired from dual-status and became a volunteer for the Army Reserve Command, providing military consultation and managing special projects.

For Jones, working with the Reserves has been a blessing, since he has gotten a wider exposure to all types of people with all types of occupations, and he has been happy to be a part of their various career developments.

In addition to the time he spends at Fort Lawton and keeping up with his large family, Jones is an avid traveler and spends time in Las Vegas, Cabo San Lucas, Mexico and Vancouver, BC. He also takes an annual, solo trip to the Guadalajara Mariachi Festival so he can hear some "good music."

Jones has been consistently working for this country and those who serve in the military for almost 69 years. When Fort Lawton closes this summer and its remaining units move to Marysville, he will have to find another way to spend his time.

"I am all military, all the time; it's all I have ever known," he said. "And it is what I will keep doing as long as I can."

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