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<p>WILKES-BARRE &#8212; Some call her &#8220;Miss Tina,&#8221; &#8220;Sister Tina&#8221; or &#8220;Grandma Tina.&#8221; Others know Tina Jones as &#8220;The Lollipop Lady&#8221; because that&#8217;s what she sells at Wilkes-Barre&#8217;s Farmers Market on Thursdays.</p><p>The Times Leader asked her about those 50-cent lollipops and their sticks, on which Jones has written a special message.</p><p>***</p><p>TL: What are your most popular flavors?</p><p>TJ: &#8220;People love them all, the watermelon, the strawberry, the cherry.&#8221;</p><p>***</p><p>TL: Does your apartment smell good when you&#8217;re making them?</p><p>TJ: &#8220;Oh, yes, especially the cinnamon.&#8221;</p><p>***</p><p>TL: Are you raising money for charity with these lollipop sales?</p><p>TJ: &#8220;I raised money for Candy&#8217;s Place, for the soup kitchen, for Ruth&#8217;s Place. Nowadays, sometimes I give away more than I sell.&#8221;</p><p>***</p><p>TL: Why did you write &#8220;Acts 2:38&#8221; on the back of each lollipop stick?</p><p>TJ: &#8220;It came to me when I was in the kitchen. The voice of God told me, &#8216;Acts 2:38&#8217;.&#8221;</p><p>***</p><p>TL: That verse says &#8220;Peter replied, &#8216;Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.&#8217; &#8221; What reaction do you want people to have?</p><p>TJ: &#8220;I want them to walk in the Lord. When I&#8217;m making the lollipops I pray over them, asking the Lord to help them with every lick &#8212; help the alcoholics and the drug addicts and the disobedient children.&#8221;</p><p>***</p><p><strong>TL:</strong> Your faith is very important to you, isn&#8217;t it?</p><p><strong>TJ:</strong> &#8220;I thank Almighty God that I can win souls for him. When I stand before Almighty God, he&#8217;s going to say, &#8216;Well done&#8217;.</p><p>You want me to tell you a story? Once I had no money and I saw something green on the ground. Everyone else was walking over it, but God didn&#8217;t mean it for them. So I picked it (a $20 bill) up and later, guess who I saw? It was a girl (from a shelter where Jones was a volunteer; the girl had recently treated Jones rudely) and you know what Almighty God said to me? He said, &#8216;Take her to McDonald&#8217;s.&#8217; So I did, and she said, &#8216;Miss Tina, I&#8217;m sorry&#8217; and we cried together at McDonald&#8217;s.</p><p>The Lord knows what he&#8217;s doing, and he just tickles me.&#8221;</p><p>***</p><p>TL: Were you always so spiritual?</p><p>TJ: &#8220;I&#8217;ve been saved 30 years.&#8221;</p><p>***</p><p>TL: How old are you, Miss Tina?</p><p>TJ: &#8220;Sixty-six, and I&#8217;m still lookin&#8217; good.&#8221;</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Tina Jones of Wilkes-Barre, also known as &#8216;The Lollipop Lady&#8217; has a message on each lollipop she sells at the Farmers Market on Thursdays. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/web1_misstina.andthecars-003.jpg</photo0><caption0>Tina Jones of Wilkes-Barre, also known as &#8216;The Lollipop Lady&#8217; has a message on each lollipop she sells at the Farmers Market on Thursdays. </caption0><photoCredit0>Mary Therese Biebel | Times Leader </photoCredit0></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p><strong>By Mary Therese Biebel</strong></p><p>mbiebel@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Mary Therese Biebel at 570-991-6109 or on Twitter @BiebelMT</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Meet Tina Jones