Jones, Judith Lee Johnson, 1940

Judith Lee Johnson Jones was born September 13, 1940 and spent her childhood in Oklahoma and Texas. In 1958, she was one of the winners of the Houston’s Chronicle contest that added the Texas Copa Girls to perform at the Sands Hotel and Casino. For Jones, the experience was a period of fun-filled freedom, followed by relentless encouragement from others to attend college, which she reluctantly did. To her surprise, she embraced college life, took her studies seriously, and received an education degree. She also became Miss Houston.

Four years later, Jones returned to Las Vegas, Nevada and the Sands. As she stepped into her role as a showgirl for the second time, she was no longer the newbie. Though her love of performance and theatre is keen, Jones channeled her passions into a 29-year career as an educator. She married a Marine named Walter F. Jones, raised their children, and moved with her husband’s career to Virginia.