Nancy Jones Says “God Put Me on This Earth” to Save Her Husband, Country Music Icon George Jones

Nancy Jones spent 32 years standing beside George Jones through some of the darkest and most difficult periods of his life. Thirteen years after the country music legend’s death, she says she is finally allowing herself to enjoy life, knowing she gave decades to helping the man she loved find his way back to sobriety and faith.

Speaking on the Drifting Cowboy Podcast this week, Nancy reflected on her life since George died in 2013. She admitted that the person she is today is very different from the woman she had to become while dealing with her husband’s struggles.

“I’m not mean no more. I had to be. But… I’m all mellowed out,” she explained.

Nancy said she feels she missed out on a lot of life while caring for George, which is one reason she now feels comfortable getting out, having fun and doing the things people may not have expected from her.

“I have missed out on life and so I’m enjoying life now,” she said. “A lot of people don’t expect me to go out and do this and do that. I deserve it. I really do.”

She added that she takes pride in knowing how much she sacrificed for her husband.

“And I pat myself on the back because I put 32 years of my life saving a man. And so that’s why I’m out having a good time now.”

Nancy Believed She Had a Purpose in George’s Life

George Jones was famously troubled by alcohol and drug addiction for much of his life. His battles became part of country music history, as did the stories of the extreme lengths he sometimes went to when he wanted to drink.

One of the most famous stories involves Nancy hiding the keys to their car to stop George from getting behind the wheel and heading to the liquor store. Rather than give up, George reportedly took the lawnmower to the liquor store instead.

For Nancy, however, the stories were much more serious than the colorful anecdotes that later became part of George’s legend.

She said she knew George was surrounded by people she believed were contributing to his problems. Instead of walking away, she felt compelled to stay and try to help him.

“I knew that the man was with the wrong crowd and they were doing things that I did not approve of,” Nancy recalled. “So I just stayed there thinking, ‘I’ve got to save this man.’”

Looking back, Nancy said she believes there was a reason she remained in George’s life through all of those years.

“I really, in my heart, I’ll always believe that’s why God put me on this earth.”

Nancy’s account of their marriage is also documented in her 2023 memoir, Playin’ Possum: My Memories of George Jones. The book offers a detailed look at what the couple experienced together.

Still, Nancy is careful not to claim that she was the person who ultimately rescued George from his addictions. In her view, God deserves that credit. Her role was to remain patient and help George find his way back to his faith.

“I’m not going to say nothing I did was easy. I wouldn’t wish it on nobody,” she said.

People sometimes told Nancy that she did not straighten George out because God did. She agreed with that assessment, but explained that she believed she had an important role in helping him get there.

“Yeah, God did. But I had to lead him back to God, and I had to have the patience with him.”

“Don’t Nag Me”

Nancy also remembered one of the most important lessons she learned while living with George’s struggles.

“The first thing he would tell you was, ‘Don’t nag me.’ I never nagged him. I never did,” she said.

Instead, Nancy learned to be patient with him, believing that patience ultimately became one of the keys to getting through those difficult years.

“I learned to have patience with him, and I think that was what was the clue to the whole thing.”

Considering everything George and Nancy endured, that level of patience was remarkable. His struggles with alcohol and drugs were extensive, and Nancy also had to contend with the complicated sides of his personality and the people surrounding him.

Yet she stayed.

George Jones Found Sobriety in 1999

George eventually reached a turning point in 1999 following a serious car wreck that changed his life. From that point forward, he remained sober and became a devout Christian.

He would stay that way for the rest of his life.

George died in 2013, meaning his final 14 years, from 1999 to 2013, were spent free from the addictions that had controlled so much of his earlier life.

Nancy takes comfort in knowing how different those final years were.

“I know he’s in heaven and I know he’s just having a blast because when he hit that bridge in ‘99, to 2013 he never touched another drink or never smoked another cigarette.”

For Nancy, that transformation made the decades of hardship worth enduring. George had finally found peace, sobriety and faith before his death.

Over the years, George himself credited Nancy with helping save his life. Their story was filled with painful moments, but it was also a story of devotion and perseverance.

Nancy spent 32 years trying to help the man she loved find his way through addiction and back to God. Now, after losing George in 2013, she believes he is in heaven and is giving herself permission to enjoy the life she sacrificed so much to preserve.

The full episode of the Drifting Cowboy Podcast is available below.