Photo by Christian Pease

Ron Jones lives in San Francisco. He and his wife Deanna share their Haight Ashbury home with grandchildren, lots of books and a peaceful garden. When not writing or performing on stage, Ron enjoys teaching poetry with the mentally disabled and coaching his granddaughters CYO basketball team. Ron is retired after working 30 years as a teacher at the San Francisco Recreation Center for the Handicapped (now the Janet Pomeroy Center).

Fired from teaching at Cubberley High School and subsequent jobs directing alternative schools at Stanford University and Mt. Zion Psychiatric Hospital, Ron found an accepting home at the Janet Pomeroy Center. Teaching the physically and mentally disabled in theater and sports, his programs empowered the disabled to speak for themselves. He provided the disabled with a celebrated place in the community from which they were previously excluded. This work became the subject of books, film and television presentations that taught us all – ‘there are more ways to win than coming in first.’

Recently Ron has taken the stage as a spoken work artist to tell about his life. A life that is unpredictable. Trusting confusion. A life based on a belief in oneself and others. A life that refuses to accept control and an order driven by fear and hatred of others. The life of a playful artist that happens to be a father, teacher, and now a grandparent. A life of quiet adventure.

Ron performs regularly in local bars, studios, and theaters. He is often accompanied by disabled dancers and jazz musicians. Working with guitarist Kenny Martha, Grammy winning David Denny and videographer Damon Molloy, Ron has recorded his stage work into a series of storytelling videos.