Margaret Hilda Jones’ Story

Margaret (far left) was born in Yardley, Birmingham, on the 24 September 1940, to her parents Patrick and Hilda Kilroy. Both Margaret, and her brothers Sidney and Bernard, had a very happy upbringing and a close relationship with their maternal grandparents who conveniently lived next door.

She attended school in Yardley and when she left school, Margaret took up a position at the Midlands Electricity Board, where she worked until she retired. Her strong faith meant that throughout her life, Margaret spent much of her free time at church volunteering, socialising and helping the community in any way she could.

In 1960, she met Colin Jones at a dance held at the church. It was love at first sight and the two were married the next year. Three years later, they welcomed their son, Dean, and began their new life as parents. They lived a happy and fulfilling life together, with frequent holidays to Devon and Cornwall with their beloved dogs.

In 1982, when Dean was only 18 years old, he was hit by a reckless driver whilst riding his motorcycle and was rushed to the Birmingham Children’s Hospital for emergency treatment.

Despite best efforts to save him, Dean slipped into a coma and sadly passed away a week after the crash. Margaret and Colin were completely devastated but firmly believed that Dean received the best care possible, and that each member of staff at the hospital did everything they could, whilst also taking the time to support them through an unbelievably stressful time.

The couple were heartbroken to lose their only son at such a young age, but it was important to them to not be torn apart by grief and anger. Instead, their bond grew stronger with the love they had for each other. They were committed to the idea of remembering Dean, and Margaret would buy flowers to put on their mantlepiece every day to honour his memory.

Margaret and Colin chose to leave a gift in their Wills to our charity as a way of showing thanks for the care Dean had received. They both cared deeply about leaving a gift so that Dean would be remembered after they had passed on. Colin died in 2017 and when Margaret passed away in 2021, she gave an incredibly generous gift to our charity, as agreed with Colin.

Christopher, Margaret’s cousin, said: “I am extremely proud of the legacy that Margaret has left in memory of Dean. She was such a kind and caring lady, so her gift is the perfect reflection of the sort of person she was. Margaret took every opportunity she could to remember Dean, and her gift will ensure that Dean’s memory, as well as her own, will continue to live on. I am sure that Margaret’s kindness will allow the hospital to continue supporting other families, just as it was able to support ours.”

Margaret’s gift will help transform our front entrance to stop our patients feeling afraid. Last updated nearly three decades ago, our current main entrance is cramped, dull and unwelcoming and doesn’t reflect the world-class care that takes place beyond it. Our families tell us it’s stressful to navigate and doesn’t put them or their children at ease.

Thanks to Margaret’s incredible generosity, the entrance will be transformed into a magical, welcoming, child-friendly, open and bright space which will transform the experiences of thousands of sick kids and families for many years to come.

Gifts in Wills from special people like Margaret allow us to go above and beyond what is possible for our sick kids and we couldn’t be more grateful for her kindness. We’d love to see what your gift could do.