Robert Wayne Knox was born on March 7, 1965. He was loved every day of his life by his mother, Molly Knox, and his father, James Knox. He was 56 when he died on November 5, 2021 at the end of a seven-year battle with cancer. Though he faced great hardship and pain in the final years of his life, he endured them so that he could spend as much time as possible with the people he loved. We are grateful for every minute.
On the day Robert was born, he was quiet but alert, more than any newborn is supposed to be. Even as a child, he had a sharp mind and a natural grasp of numbers. When his grandparents gave him and his sister’s money to buy treats, he figured out that they could avoid a penny of tax if they bought only nine candies at a time in separate transactions. He won a dominos tournament against a group of adults who thought he was too young to know how to play the game.
Learning came effortlessly to Robert. He excelled in school and graduated with honors from Atlanta High School in 1983. By the time he left for college, it was obvious that he could do anything he wanted. The US Navy tried to recruit him to be a nuclear engineer for their submarines, but Robert was an entrepreneur at heart. He went to Tyler Junior College before graduating in 1989 from Texas A&M University with degrees in Business Administration and Finance. He had a long and successful career at AT&T, and he also founded his own company, 460 Technologies.
Throughout his life, Robert had a playful and mischievous spirit. He enjoyed football with fierce joy – and later had the back pain to prove it. He could make a pun about almost anything, and he delighted in telling worse and worse jokes until his audience was groaning in mock-despair. His favorite place to be was with his family gathered around a card table, telling stories, teasing each other, and breaking out into song. His wit, charm, and warmth could draw a smile out of you even during the hardest times. He filled our lives with laughter.
Robert left behind many beloved family members and friends: his loving and devoted wife, Trang Nguyen; his mother and his rock, Molly Knox; his cherished children, Jennifer Knox, Robert Taylor Knox, Katherine King, and Emily Knox and step-children Khoa Trinh and Minh Trinh; his sister and constant friend Lori Jill Williams; his dear niece Emma Ann Jackson and nephews Bobby Hudson and Dylan Williams; many close aunts and uncles, cousins and friends; and the brightest sunshine of his final years, his first grandchild, Magnolia King.
In death, he has joined with his father, James Knox, his eldest sister, Kristy Ann Jackson, and his grandparents, H.O. and Estelle Taylor and Jim and Olean Knox. We are glad that he is in their arms and that his arms are around them.
Though the ache of our loss is hard to bear, we find solace in knowing that Robert is beyond suffering now. He was a Christian and attended the Atlanta Church of Christ. We hold tight to the golden promise that we will be reunited with him. Until then, he will remain alive in the wonderful stories and memories that he made with us.
Funeral services will be 10:00 am, Friday, November 12, 2021 in the Hanner Funeral Chapel with Jon McCormack officiating.
Visitation will be Thursday, November 11, 2021, from 6 pm to 8 pm at Hanner Funeral Service.
Interment will be in Smyrna Cemetery.
