Richard Carroll Cox died at 2:43 p.m. Jan. 17, 2026, at the Tennessee

State Veterans Home in Humboldt.

He was 81, born Dec. 15, 1944, in Troy, Ala., to Harvey Cox and Lucille

Sutton Cox.

He and his brother Harold, who preceded him in death, grew up in Ariton,

Ala., but they spent many summers in Trezevant with their dad and their

stepmother Fair Mae Cox. He had lived in West Tennessee for the last

several years.

He graduated from Dothan (Ala.) High School in 1963 and joined the Navy

soon after, serving 6 years. He married Ruth Hall Cox in 1967, and their

children are Shawn Cox Sumner of Martin, Dawn Cox Patterson of

Jackson, Christy Bolton Cain of Jackson, the late Robyn Cox Carroll and

the late Shane Cox. He is also survived by 13 grandchildren - Chase

Carroll of Trezevant; Chelsea Carroll Britton of Sevierville; Brooke Mayo

Hinote of Rockvale; Noah Vickers of Milan; Shelby Sumner of Martin; Sara

Beth Sumner of Martin; Kaleb Keim of Jackson; Katie Patterson of

Jackson; Tyler Williams of Little Rock, Ark.; Kaitlyn Cox Starr of Bruceton;

Kristen Cox of Bruceton; Anna Grace Brown of Milan; and Taylor Brown of

Louisville, Ky. He is also survived by 12 great-grandchildren - Jabrian,

Leland, Brooklyn, Riley, William, Parker, Max, Evan, Garrett, Elana, Jesse

and Rowen. He is also survived by two sisters – Pamela Cox Bryant of Trezevant and Lisa Cox Meals of Huntingdon.

He worked for more than 30 years for Bell South/AT&T before retirement.

Visitation will be from 5-7 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 22, at Bodkin Funeral Home

in Milan with brief words of remembrance following. A graveside military

service will be held at 11a.m. on Friday, Jan. 23, at Walnut Grove Methodist

Church Cemetery, 151 Harmon Arnold Road near Milan.