In 1961-1962, Jonas Jonys was a vicar in Molėtai, and from 1962 to 1984 he was a canon in Videniškiai. While he was a parish priest of Birštonas, the bishop T. Matulionis found refuge in 1956 and lived there for nearly two years after returning from his third imprisonment at Vladimir’s Prison and the Potma Disabled Home. The bishop, who had just arrived from the captivity, was very weak and stayed with priest Pilkas in Butrimons for a while, with his sister-in-law in Kaunas, and later decided to strengthen his health at Birštonas Sanatorium. The priest Jonys took great care of him from the early days, the bishop trusted the priest, liked Birštonas because it was within the boundaries of his diocese, so he just begged, “Where will I go now, harbour me and keep me at your house.” The canon also participated in the secret consecration ceremony of Bishop T. Matulionis successor, Vincentas Sladkevičius, at Birštonas rectory on Christmas night in 1957. As a result of this incident, he had to pay the price of his freedom – he was arrested, interrogated, judged and spent 3 years in the Mordovian forced labour camp. Despite his ill health, the bishop Matulionis was summoned as a witness in his trial in Vilnius.