By Neesha Hosein
For one San Jacinto College alumna, her life’s eureka moment came one day while sitting near the water in San Leon, wondering what the future had in store. The sunlight cascaded a beautiful amber across the sky, and Joanne Jones realized her purpose.
“I was at an in-between stage, feeling like I’d completed a season in my life but didn’t know what direction to go next,” Jones said. “I’m sitting there, having a personal moment with God, thinking, ‘Tell me what to do. I’m lost. I need help.’”
In the amber sky, the message was clear: “Start a business, name it Amber Skies, and devote your life to advocating for others.”
While the moment seemed spontaneous, the inspiration began long before.
Journey to discovery
Joanne Jones (photo courtesy of Joanne Jones)
Before earning her associate degree in general studies from the Central Campus in 2015, Jones was a busy working mother and psychology major with no plan. Aptitude and personality tests helped narrow her career focus.
“Cultural anthropology was a really good fit for me,” Jones said. “I’ve always been intrigued by studies about how humanity evolved, why things exist as they are today, and where we’re heading.”
To Jones, education was a golden ticket. One San Jac course introduced her to short films, writing documentaries, story planning, storyboarding, and creating YouTube videos, giving her the motivation she needed.
“I was one of the two student leaders, and I learned about team building,” Jones said. “I was a producer, and I wrote the storyline for a small film project. We delegated duties to other team members. It was well organized, and everyone fulfilled their responsibilities. I had a great experience with leadership and self-accountability.”
Jones credits her class experience and sales background for showing her there is a need for understanding “how people think, learn, and develop based on their belief systems and environment — all things that affect us greatly.”
Turning points
A pedestrian accident left Jones’ mom with a severe leg injury. Jones was her mother’s primary caretaker while juggling her other roles as employee, mother, and student.
Long after her mother’s recovery, Jones still felt the effects of her role. In an essay, she wrote about how difficult it was to be a caretaker while managing her own responsibilities. Moved by her story, a professor who owned a home health company offered an opportunity that would become a milestone in her career journey.
Jones became a community liaison for three years, learning about senior care services. She moved back and forth from home health to hospice with titles like marketing director for a skilled nursing facility and alternative administrator for personal care services.
It was then she found her calling in the amber sky.
Finding life’s purpose
With a passion for senior services, Jones started her own business in 2022, Amber Skies Solutions, specializing in Medicare, small-employer group insurance, and individual and family insurance. With 20 years in the health care industry, Jones has learned “life is a lot shorter than you think it is.”
“I’ve learned you have to have a passion for what you’re doing to be successful,” she said. “In this business, you see the value of life. Before you know it, 75 years can pass. That’s 75 Christmases, 75 birthdays. Minus childhood and early adulthood, only about 35 of those are spent working. If you don’t start becoming successful until your mid-40s and 50s, you’ve got 25 years to get some substantial things in place so you can retire comfortably.”
Jones believes people should follow their passion.
“Don’t let fear stop you because we’re not promised tomorrow,” she said.
