Janell Cox peacefully passed away on Feb. 26, 2024, at Iowa Methodist Hospital in Des Moines, Iowa.
Jane Janell (Brownlee) Cox was born Nov. 20, 1927, to Harold and Dorothy (Pharo) Brownlee of Mallard, Iowa. She graduated from Mallard High in 1945 and then worked as the school secretary.
In 1947 she moved to Des Moines to attend the American Institute of Business (AIB). There she met and married George M. Cox on Jun. 5, 1948 and they had 3 children, Larry, Debra and Kelli. In 1948 she began working for the law firm of Gibson, Stewart and Garret, before leaving the workforce to raise a family and do in-home typing for Look magazine for many years. From 1968-1977 she worked the desk at Plaza Lanes followed by Drake University’s Law Library until her retirement in 1992. She was a lifelong member of Immanuel United Methodist Church, serving as president of the women’s group (UMW) for 10 years.
An avid sports fan, she loved her Hawkeyes and went to many bowl games with her husband. They also enjoyed playing bridge, bowling, traveling and golfing. During many years of camping with family, they visited 38 national parks and many state parks. In Iowa, they often camped with friends and family at Springbrook and Cherry Glen. Travels included vacations to Alaska and Europe. After the passing of her husband in 2014, she moved to Walnut Ridge retirement community in 2019 where she continued playing bridge, watching as many sports as she could, and enjoying family gatherings.
She is survived by her children Larry (Barbara) Cox of Clive, Debbie (Dan) Koopman of Cedar Rapids and Kelli (John) Putney of Urbandale, a brother H. John (Pat) Brownlee of California, 6 grandchildren and 5 great grandchildren.
Janell never met a stranger – always welcoming and loved by everyone she met. The family would like to extend a special thanks to the staff and residents at Walnut Ridge for the special care, love and friendships they provided to Janell.
A Celebration of Life will be held on Sat., Mar. 2, 2024, at 1 p.m. in the Walnut Room at Walnut Ridge Senior Living Community, Clive, IA. Memorials may be given to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
