Dr. John Thomas "Tommy" Sox, Jr.

Anyone who knew Tommy Sox knew he was a giver. They also knew he didn’t make a big deal about it. He wasn’t in it for accolades or prestige or to see what it would get him in return. He simply wanted to do the right thing for the people in his life.

Tommy attended Columbia public Schools: Brennen, Crayton, A.C. Flora. His college years were spent at Clemson where his love for the Tigers grew. He then went on to MUSC where he earned his DMD. For decades he practiced dentistry on True Street.

Most people dread going to the dentist, but not the patients of Tommy Sox. Walking in you were greeted by friendly, familiar faces and Tommy’s yellow lab. His patients knew him to be thorough, compassionate, and precise. Although he had no concept of time, when you were in Tommy’s chair, you knew you were his top priority. It wasn’t uncommon for people to travel long distances to see him. He had lifelong patients.

Tommy was a lifelong kind of guy. He valued people, spent energy and time for relationships, instilling in his daughters the importance of friends and family. He was very proud to be from a large family that gathered twice a year, every year. He was a hands-on kind of guy. He reveled in experiences: beach trips, boating, skiing, and getting together to share a good meal.

Tommy’s life was full of adventures. As a boy, he caught catfish in Gills Creek and sold them outside a local store. His paper route would require him to be up before the neighborhood. He spent summers working on his Uncle Kenneth’s farm with other Sox cousins. Learning how to ski barefoot on Lake Murray with Robert. As an adult, he survived a deep sea fishing trip where he watched his boat sink from a crowded life raft. He took any opportunity he could to get down to the beach, playing his favorite songs in the car the whole way down.

Music also gave Tommy great pleasure. He often woke his daughters early on the weekends with rock music blaring throughout the house. Nothing though gave him more musical bliss than hearing Savannah sing. When that happened, he sat enamored. There was no doubt that he considered both of his daughters, Jenny and Savannah, his greatest accomplishments. His pride in them was so apparent it seemed to hover in the air around him.

Later in his adult life, he honed his art for woodworking and gardening. Jenny and Savannah remember their house smelling of tomatoes in the summer, enough to share with everyone from friends to total strangers. When it came to woodworking, Tommy was known to be a perfectionist. If you were fortunate to have anything Tommy built, you knew it would have been done with painstaking detail and a “short” woodworking lecture.

When you were around him, there was a sense of rightness. We’ll miss that about him – his steadiness, his stories, his laugh, him.

Tommy was predeceased by his parents, John Thomas Sox, Sr. and his mother Ina Mims Sox.

He is survived by his sister Nancy Dickens (Randy Dickens), his daughters, Jenny Sox (Sethe Wetter) and Savannah Bass (Brock Bass), grandchildren, Piper and Joanna Bass, and dozens and dozens of family members and a host of patients and friends.

In lieu of flowers, the family would love for you to share a good meal with the people you love. If you would like to contribute to something Tommy was passionate about, you can donate to any of the following: Coastal Conservation Association, Children’s Dental Clinic on Blanding Street, or Harvest Hope Food Bank.