Celebrating Floyd Jones

When he was a young boy picking cotton in Missouri, Floyd Jones dreamed of a life of success and generosity. Today, as we mark Floyd’s passing, we celebrate his life, his legacy and the dream he made a reality.

Throughout his lifetime, Floyd cultivated a meaningful legacy of philanthropic support for the arts, for social justice, for health and for his community, making an indelible impact on numerous organizations in the region.

The son of sharecroppers, Floyd was the first in his family to graduate high school. After graduating in 1945 he joined the army and served long enough to qualify for the G.I. Bill, making a long-desired college education attainable. It was during his time in the service that he met and fell in love with Delores Haglund. 

Their relationship would bring Floyd to Seattle and the University of Washington where he continued his education and graduated with a business degree in 1954. He often credited his experience at UW as foundational for his tremendously successful career as a Seattle stockbroker. During his career, Floyd garnered significant wealth – most of which he gave back to the causes and organizations he loved. He was known to say that “philanthropy is the sweetness of the soul.”

Together with his late wife, Delores, Floyd made many meaningful investments at the University, including gifts to the College of Arts & Sciences, the School of Drama and the School of Dentistry.

In recent years, Floyd’s philanthropy has expanded to include the shared passions of his partner, Alene Moris, resulting in support for the UW Women’s Center to empower young women pursuing positions of leadership in the civic and political arenas.

In his autobiography, Kisses for Breakfast, Floyd wrote, “I always wanted to do the right thing, to be helpful, to be good. What amazes me is that it all turned out so well. It was like a dream come true.”

The ripples of Floyd’s passion for philanthropy are far and wide, and his dream lives on through the numerous individuals and organizations who have been touched by his unparalleled philanthropic spirit.