Howard B. Cox JR.'s Obituary
Howard B. Cox, Jr.
Howard B. Cox, Jr, age 67, passed away at the UW Medical Center overlooking the Husky Stadium, befitting a lifelong Husky fan, on November 9, 2014 in Seattle, WA. Howard was born April 22, 1947 in Seattle, WA to Howard B. Cox Sr. and Rosella Darline (Ineck). He married Vilda Marie (Warner) on December 31, 1988. Howard was a very loving Husband, Dad and Grandpa. He will be deeply missed.
He was preceded in death by his Mom Rosella Darline Barber, his Dad Howard B. Cox, Sr, his Grandma Sandra Edna Morris, Grandpa John Alfred Morris, and Brother Kenneth E. Graham.
He is survived by his loving Wife Vilda, his son Bruce Ward and his wife Kim and their kids Andrew and Angie Ward, Jhena, Elijah, and Keira Paterno, and his daughter Lalitta Ward (Jake DePew), and her son Kyle J. Ward.
Howard was an avid baseball player in his youth, so much that he would go to bed with his baseball cap on and glove in hand, and his mom would have to take them off after he fell asleep. Howard was drafted as a pitcher by two Major League teams after high school. He chose the Dodgers. At training camp he was struck in the knee by a fastball that ultimately ended his career. He remained a lifelong fan of baseball, and many other sports. He continued to play many sports throughout his life. You could find him fishing or dirt biking with his Grandpa, or bowling on a traveling team with his Dad. He also bowled on a winter league team with friends, and then later recruited his wife to bowl on the team. He played baseball in a community league, golfed with his golfing buddies, played arcade games and foosball with his best friend Craig, and also went to Vilda’s Dad in the mid 1970’s to learn how to play pool, or just watching his favorite sports on TV. He enjoyed going to baseball games with his family.
Shortly after his baseball injury, Howard started working for the Boeing Company on September 17, 1965 at the age of 18 as a Manufacturing Helper at the Seattle plant. Later he was transferred to the Auburn plant where he met Vilda’s Dad. Later, Howard was transferred to the Frederickson plant where he was a painter, then later became Area Team leader, and his title was Wing Skin Prep Mechanic A. Howard retired on September 29, 2014 after 49 years with the company.
Howard enjoyed going camping with his wife and family in his RV, often visiting locations in Washington, Las Vegas and California (Disneyland, here we come!). Whenever he traveled by plane, he always made sure he was traveling on a Boeing jet. He also took a couple cruises with his wife to Alaska and Hawaii. After he retired, he planned to travel and continue visiting baseball fields.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the University of Washington medical center or Fred Hutchinson for Pancreatic research.
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