Paula Jayne Higgins

Paula Jayne Ornelas Higgins, age 79, died in the early hours of February 9th, 2023, in Jacksonville, Florida. The Neptune Society is handling the arrangements and there will be no service at her request. She did not want to be left out of the party.

Paula was born in Roswell, NM, in 1943. She had to overcome many hardships to become financially secure with her husband, William “Bill” Higgins, and then on her own after his death at the young age of 41. She put herself and her two daughters, Lara Ragunas and Lisa Young, through college by working 2 and sometimes 3 jobs. She retired as a Senior Financial Analyst from AAA Insurance in Tampa. She made many amazing friends along the way.

Paula loved the opportunity to live in and travel to other countries during Bill’s career with the Department of the Army. Later, she loved cruises and traveling with her daughters.

She volunteered for and donated to organizations that support homeless people and migrant families. She was politically active, donating to and working for various local, state, and national Democrats and progressive causes.

She is survived by her daughters, son-in-law Michael Ragunas, and four grandchildren, Logan Young of Tampa; Kendall Young, Paulina Ragunas, and William Ragunas of Jacksonville. She is also survived by siblings, nieces, and nephews in Florida, New Mexico, California, and North Carolina.

If you would like to honor Paula’s memory, please consider donating to Blanket Tampa Bay (https://www.blanketampabay.org), Beth El Farmworker Ministry (https://beth-el.org/), and World Central Kitchen (https://wck.org/).

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.neptunesociety.com/location/jacksonville-cremation for the Higgins family.