Honourable Ella Jones
1954
The first African-American and first woman elected mayor in Ferguson, Mo.
Ella M. Jones has been a Ferguson resident for more than 40 years; widowed with one daughter. Ella graduated from the University of Missouri at St. Louis with a B.A. Degree in Chemistry. She was certified by the American Chemical Society as a high-pressure liquid chromatographer and completed training as a pharmacy technician. Ella’s previous employers include Washington University School of Medicine, in the Biochemistry Molecular Bio-physics Department, and KV Pharmaceutical Company as an Analytical Chemist. Before being elected to the Council, Ella completed training in municipal leadership from the Sue Shear Institute for Women in Public Life at the University of Missouri at St. Louis. After being elected to the Council, Ella pursued additional education from the Municipal Governance Institute sponsored by the Missouri Municipal League and earned a certificate as a Municipal Official, and serving her second term on the Environmental, Energy And Sustainable Development Committee.
After 30 years of being a Mary Kay Sales Director and served 22 years as a Pastor in the African Methodist Episcopal Church, Ella resigned her Mary Kay Directorship to serve her community full time. Ella serves the community in numerous capacities. She is a member of the Boards of the Emerson Family YMCA and of the St. Louis MetroMarket. St. Louis MetroMarket is a decommissioned bus that was retrofitted as a mobile farmers’, market to provide fresh fruits and vegetables to underserved communities. Ella is the founder and Chairperson of Community Forward, Inc., a nonprofit community development organization. As a Council Member, she serves as a council representative on the following commissions and boards: Human Rights, Traffic, Landmarks, Senior Citizens, Parks, and West Florissant Business Association. Ella is Chairperson of the Annual UNITY Weekend, which provides school supplies and support services to families with children attending schools in the districts serving Ferguson. Ella collaborates with the Samaritan’s Feet Organization, during their National Day of Service Event held every January in Ferguson to provide stylish athletic shoes to children in the school districts serving Ferguson.
Source City of Ferguson