Jessie Lynn Cox was born December 7, 1929 in Water Valley, Mississippi. He married Maxine Breedlove of Coffeeville, Mississippi on January 29, 1950. Over the course of their 61-year marriage, they raised three children, and welcomed five grandchildren and one great grandson into the world. Jessie was a friend, an advisor and a mentor to countless nieces, nephews and cousins, many of whom lived with his family over the years.
Jessie moved to Memphis, Tennessee where he worked for S. C. Toof & Co. and also attended night school at the Memphis School of Commerce. In 1953, he was transferred to Florence, Alabama to manage Toof Printing & Stationery Company. Jessie served as President there until 1965, when he purchased Toof''s interests in Alabama and changed the name to Printers & Stationers, Inc. He retired as President of the company in 1995 but continued to offer guidance and expertise from his nearly 60-year career in the office products business until his death. Once honored as "Boss of the Year" by the Florence Junior Chamber of Commerce, Jessie was a respected and popular leader who loved his company, the people who worked for him and the contributions that Printers & Stationers made to Shoals area over its more than 75 years in business. Jessie was one of the founders of the Alabama Office Products Association and served several terms as a Director. He was a founder of National Office Buyers, Inc. (NOB), which was the first office products buyers association in the United States. Jessie served as Treasurer of the group in the formative years and as a Director until his retirement. NOB later merged with the Tri Mega group and in 2005 Jessie was presented a Lifetime Achievement Award for his contribution to the office products industry. Jessie was a charter member and congregant of Woodmont Baptist Church of Florence. He was actively involved in the Church since its formation and dedicated himself to serving the congregation in many capacities including Treasurer. Jessie was also actively involved in the Florence community and served as a Director of the Florence Chamber of Commerce, the Salvation Army, and as President of the Florence Merchants Association and Downtown Florence Unlimited. He was a member of Turtle Point Yacht and Country Club and the Civitan Club.
Jessie is survived by his wife Maxine Breedlove Cox, daughter Sandra Cox Johnson and her husband Samuel Michael (Mike) Johnson of Florence, son Robert (Bob) Lynn Cox and his wife Elizabeth (Beth) Darnell Cox of Florence, and daughter Teresa Cox Standard and late husband Henry Cooper Standard, III of Nashville. His grandchildren include Lindsey Johnson Roebuck and husband Morris Lloyd (Butch) Roebuck Jr of Birmingham, Christie (Chris) Johnson Penney and husband Zachary (Zack) Patterson Penney of Huntsville, Robert (Rob) Warner Cox of Florence, Saxon Henry Standard and Cooper Rowe Standard, both of Nashville, and great grandson Ganor Patterson Penney of Huntsville. He is also survived by brother Raymond (Ray) Lee Cox of Water Valley, MS and sister-in-law Jean Breedlove Fly and husband Gerald Fly and sister-in-law Christine Breedlove Goering. Jessie was preceded in death by his parents, Robert Lee and Lavada Fortner Cox and his three brothers Henry , J. T. and Warner Cox. The family cherishes caregivers and friends Alyce Dillard and Brenda Griggs. The family offers thanks to the nurses and staff of CTRU and ICU at ECM and to the team of physicians including Dr. Robert Bailey, Dr. Robert Bloome, Dr. Harold Boye, Dr. Gerald Haggstrom, Dr. Theresa Lango, Dr. Felix Morris, and Dr. Peter Pons. Visitation will be Monday, August 1, 2011 at 1:00pm at Woodmont Baptist Church in Florence, Alabama. Funeral services will begin at the Church at 2:00p. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorials be sent to the Woodmont Baptist Church Building Fund, 2002 Darby Drive, Florence, AL, 35630 or University School of Nashville, 2000 Edgehill Avenue, Nashville, TN 37212.