Frank Cox, director for Pahrump Valley Junior Golf Association, dies
His life was dedicated to his sport, golf, and to the kids of Pahrump Valley.
The director of golf and tournaments for the Pahrump Valley Junior Golf Association, Frank Cox, passed away quietly on Saturday. His cause of death is unknown. According to his neighbor and friend JD Fraser, Cox was 67-years-old and had no surviving relatives in Pahrump. He is survived by his daughter in Texas, Brienne Whitley.
“His nearest next of kin, his daughter, flew into town to make arrangements,” Fraser said. “She is from Texas.”
Cox was a golf professional at Willow Creek and was widely known for his tremendous love for the sport of golf and his dedication to teaching golf to the kids of Pahrump.
He became the director of junior golf in 2013. As the director, he ran the summer golf program for kids, which meant he had to organize tournaments and teach clinics, braving the extreme heat in the summertime. Then during the year, he would volunteer coach for the middle school and high school golf teams.
Trojans golf coach Bob Hopkins feels the kids lost a great advocate and teacher of the sport.
“As far as junior golf, he has done so much for us,” Hopkins said. “I have known him for 15 years. When he worked for Willow Creek he helped the golf team, and then he has been running our junior golf now for the past four years. He would give up his Saturday morning for any kid that wanted to work with him.”
Hopkins said he not only loved the sport of golf but had the patience to teach it to young kids, which he loved.
“For my own family, he meant a lot to my two boys,” Hopkins said. “Frank was always willing to work with them. He also helped with my two daughters in high school too. And he also helped with all my grandkids. He will be hard to replace. My grandson told me, ‘Frank, he liked us.’ He truly loved kids. He also has helped Julie Floyd with middle school golf and the girls high school team. He was a great guy and my younger grandkids were affected by his passing.”
Assistant Trojans golf coach Steve Nygaard will also miss him.
“He was a big supporter of junior golf in Pahrump,” Nygaard said. “My kids enjoyed being around him because he was always so positive and always helping them with their golf game. He is going to be missed.”
According to Larry Goins, a board member for junior golf in Pahrump, golf professional Randy Mudge of Mountain Falls will fill in for Cox until someone else can be found.
Funeral arrangements are being made by his family and the funeral will be in Texas.
Contact sports editor Vern Hee at vhee@pvtimes.com
