Edna Cox

Edna (Petters) Cox, 92, wife of the late William R. (Bill) Cox, passed away August 30, 2015 in Houston. Edna was born January 9, 1923 in Crosby, Texas to William (Bill) and Matilda Petters. She married Bill on July 25th, 1943 and they would have celebrated 72 years of marriage this year. Bill passed away just a short time ago on July 6, 2015.

Edna grew up in Crosby where she worked on the family farm. She was a second generation native Texan and spoke only Czech until she started school and began learning English. She went on to graduate from Crosby High School. Growing up, she learned to cook and how to make traditional kolaches. These, along with her strudel and lizzies, were commonly requested items at family gatherings. Sunday dinners and holidays were made special by her delicious cooking.

Edna was also an accomplished seamstress. She made many of her children’s clothes when they were growing up, and most of her own clothes, including her own wedding dress. Edna took classes as an adult where she learned to sew specialty fabrics and used these skills to make wedding gowns for her daughter and daughters-in-law, as well as Christening gowns for some grandchildren. She sewed for many years for all of her family - even making matching outfits for everyone. The women in the family all have sundresses and nightgowns made by her that have been almost worn out, and the family has countless memories of repaired jeans, replaced buttons, new pillow cases, and tons of handmade outfits.

After marrying Bill, Edna took care of her home and family. She supported Bill as he continued his education and built his accounting business. When he became involved in state and national accounting associations, Edna accompanied Bill on trips all across the United States. Edna and Bill were also involved in the Houston Gemological Society and attended gem shows together. One of Bill’s hobbies was faceting and making jewelry and Edna loved wearing the jewelry Bill created for her. Sometimes, she even made clothing to go with pieces of jewelry he designed. Edna learned how to string stone beads and pearls they bought at the jewelry shows and then taught the women and girls in the family this craft. Edna loved her jewelry enough to lend special pieces to her daughter, daughters-in-law, and granddaughters for special occasions. Because some pieces were worn several times by the same person, Edna had specific pieces she wanted to be passed down to her descendants.

In 1972, Edna found her dream car, a brand new canary-yellow Chevrolet Camaro. She had fun driving it and many people, often strangers, offered to buy it from her, but she loved it too much to ever take any offer seriously.

Edna’s personal hobbies included gardening and reading. She saw beauty in God’s creation and loved her flower beds - they were always full of pansies and her other favorite flowers. There were gardens in her backyard in Houston and at the beach house she and Bill owned in Galveston where she grew fresh vegetables and colorful hibiscus flowers. She also had a lemon tree from which the sweetest lemons grew. Many family members now have their own lemon trees grown from cuttings on this tree. She was an avid reader, often reading multiple books at one time, and enjoyed historical fiction and stories of romance.

“Mother” to her children and “Grandma” to her grandchildren, Edna was an elegant and beautiful lady. Her sparkling blue eyes and sweet smile will be missed.

She is survived by sons and daughters-in-law, Bob and Debbie Cox of Brenham, Ken and Bonnie Cox of Houston, and daughter and son-in-law, Cindy and W.L. Dobie of Red Rock; grandchildren Ashley, Ty, Bart, Brandy, Ruth, Amber and husband, Mark, Will and wife, Heather, Adam and wife, Melodie, Crystal, Kyle and wife, Ashley, Kimberly and husband, Collin; great-grandchildren, Jade, Autumn, Chelsea, Shayna, Abigail, Kendyl, Joseph, Gwyneth, Alexis, Cheyenne, Kaiya, Robbie, Trey, Colton, Mason, Camden; and great-great granddaughter, Adalynn; sister, Evelyn Petters, brother-in-law and sister-in-law, George and Leona Cox; sister-in-law Eleene Hancock; as well as numerous nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her husband, William (Bill) Cox, parents, brother, Wilbert Petters, sister and brother-in-law Winnie (Petters) and Bill Kanak, and brother-in-law, Frank Hancock.

Serving as pallbearers are Ty Cox, Will Dobie, Adam Dobie, Kyle Cox, Mark Till, and Collin Weiser.

The family would like to extend special thanks and gratitude to Melissa Porter for the dedicated care she has provided Edna over the last few years and the extra attention she gave her in her last days.

Family visitation is Friday, September 4, 5-7 p.m. at Memorial Oaks Funeral Home, 13001 Katy Freeway, Houston, Texas. Service will be Saturday, September 5, 3:00 p.m. at Memorial Oaks Funeral Home, with burial to follow.