George Jones' sister reflects on childhood

TYLER COUNTY - By Justin Hinton, KFDM NewsHelen Scroggins remembers her brother, George Jones, as a quiet boy who loved to sing. He didn t have much to do, you know, with other people too much. You d see him out there sitting under the big tree and you d wonder what was going through his mind, Scroggins said.Jones was born in Saratoga, Texas, moved to Kountze and then to Beaumont during his youth. Scroggins said his singing abilities came from his parents.Their mother played the organ at church. Before he started, he was playing in churches and singing, but when he got singing out in the public, he said he felt like it wasn t right so he quit, she said.The beginning wasn t easy for the small-town man. He told me a lot of times, it was hard for him to get up in front of all that many people singing, she said.Scroggins says he loved singing, but coping with the fame, was difficult. Family members say the pressure led to his public battle with alcohol.During those times, family guided him through. It was up here in Beaumont one time in the hotel and my husband went down there and got him to calm down, Scroggins said. When he walked in the room, my husband, George straightened up. She said the two had a very special bond. Jones was the youngest of eight children. Nearly 10 years separated him from Scroggins. She says she helped raised him, and he called her mom.She went to as many concerts as she could, sending her support from backstage. I told him, You gon do good. I told him that all the time. She says she will miss him but has a lot of good memories.