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After the war, his first job was in Nome with the Civil Aeronautics Authority, later to become the Federal Aviation Administration. While in Nome, he met his lifelong love, Ellen Raney, who was there working as a nurse. They were married and moved to Gustavus, then Juneau in late-1949. In the early 1960s they moved back to Nome and then into the interior village of Cantwell before returning to Juneau.

When he retired from the FAA, Jesse spent almost a decade working at a family-owned sawmill in Juneau.

He enjoyed cribbage with friends and a good morning cup of coffee. He loved to fish for salmon but really didn't care to eat his success stories, his family said. He was very proud of having helped build the original log Chapel by the Lake.

Family members said he had a heart for shut-ins and the bush people, resulting in a quiet service to others. He lived a full and happy life and was healthy up to the end, they said.

He is survived by his son, Doug Jones and his wife, JoAnn, of Juneau; daughters, Sidney Nelson and her husband, Steve, of Petersburg, Christy Paquette and her husband, Mike, of Juneau, and Beth Schwartzengraber, of Hawaii; and many grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

A memorial service will be on April 19 so family from Hawaii and the Lower 48 can attend.