Tonight: Memorial For Singer Sharon Jones To Be Held At Church In Clinton Hill

A memorial to “celebrate the life” of funk and soul singer Sharon Jones will be held tonight at Brown Memorial Baptist Church (484 Washington Avenue at Gates Avenue) in Clinton Hill, according to a tweet sent out by the Sharon Jones handle.

The service is scheduled for 6:30pm this evening, Wednesday, December 14 and is open to the public.

Jones died of pancreatic cancer at age 60 on November 18. The powerhouse singer was first diagnosed with bile duct cancer in 2013, which cut short her tour and postponed the release of Give The People What They Want, the Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings album released in 2014.

The diagnosis was then changed to stage II pancreatic cancer, and she underwent chemotherapy and surgery. A New York Times obituary reported that Jones returned to the stage in 2014 and performed bald, as she felt her wig would fly off while she danced.

Jones was “discovered” at age 40 by Gabriel Roth, founder of Daptone Records. In her earlier years, Jones worked as a Rikers Island prison guard during the 1980s as well as an armed security guard for Wells Fargo.

In 2014, she was nominated for a Grammy in the category of Best R&B album for Give the People What They Want.

Local fans were treated to a free concert at the Prospect Park Bandshell as she and her band opened the 2016 BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! Summer Series.

Fan Janelle Mondanaro was saddened to learn of her death. She had tickets for the Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings show which would have taken place on Friday, December 9 at Kings Theatre in Flatbush. “Sharon Jones reminded us not only to fight for our lives, but to fight for our dreams.” she said.

A second memorial service will be held this Saturday, December 17 at the Imperial Theatre in her hometown of August, Georgia where she was born on May 4, 1956.

“She worked hard and struggled her whole life, never letting her dream of performing slip away,” Mondanaro continued.  “She spent the last years of her life doing just that, in brilliant, soulful, performances that have no contemporary equal. She will be missed, and we can all honor her by living out loud.”

Note: During the service, parking will not be allowed on the streets in the vicinity of Brown Memorial Baptist Church during the service.