John Wayne Cox

June 19, 1942 - December 31, 2020

John Wayne Cox, 78, of Midland, NC, died Thursday, December 31, 2020, at Atrium Health Concord, NC. John, or Jay as he was more commonly known, was born in Kinston, NC, on June 19, 1942, the son of John & Carrie Cox. He grew up in Kinston, at the age of 17, he moved to New Jersey to work for his uncle in the restaurant business. Jay became a cook and ended up owning and running his own 24 hour diner called the White Diamond, in Clark, NJ. This is where he met his wife of 50 years Carmel Cox, whom he married on February 22, 1969. After being in the food service industry for many years he went to work as a commercial building maintenance manager, in Rahway, NJ. As a maintenance manager, many of the responsibilities he had were ranging from plumbing, electricity, carpentry and just about anything that was mechanical. There were not many things that Jay could not do. Jay’s vast wealth of knowledge was shared with many including his kids. Later in life Jay discovered his love for music and playing the guitar. Jay was self taught and truly enjoyed pickin & grinnin. Jay began playing music with others at Albert Music Hall in Waretown, NJ. Jay retired in 2008 and relocated to North Carolina, to be closer to his kids. Though Jay was retired, he was no stranger to work nor to getting his hands dirty. Jay loved spending time working on wood projects, gardening, watching old westerns and most of all playing music with his friends. Jay also loved spending time with his children and grandchildren. Jay is survived by his children, Arlene (husband Baden) Soong of Winfield Park, NJ; Paul Faulkner of Midland, NC; Brian (wife Leeann) Voss of Brick, NJ; Eric Cox of Charlotte, NC; Denise (husband Robert) Nunez of Matthews, NC, five grandchildren Samatha, Jake, Victoria, Anthony and Nathan, sister Kathy Cox Edmundson and his dog Toby. He was preceded in death by his wife Carmel, brother Harold, sister Peggy and his parents. Jay’s genuine heart and outgoing personality was beloved by many and will be forever missed. Jay’s family has given the privilege of caring for him to the family of Lowe-Neddo Funeral Home. A Celebration of his life will be held at his home on January 23 at 1:00pm.