Glenn Andrew Cox Jr.

Glenn Andrew Cox, Jr. died on Friday, September 29, in Dallas, Texas. He was 94 years

old. After a life of many accomplishments, Glenn will be most remembered by his family and

many friends for his mischievous sense of humor, gentlemanly grace, politeness, consideration

of others, conviction, and generosity.

Glenn was born in 1929 in Sedalia, Missouri. With his younger sister Helen, he grew up on a

small farm outside of town and enjoyed a childhood that included lots of chores. He expressed

particular distaste for having to clean out the henhouse, even though fried chicken remained his

favorite meal for the rest of his life. For grades 1-8, Glenn attended Striped College, a two-room

schoolhouse named for its vertically striped paint. His parents’ farmhouse was electrified when

he was in the fifth grade, aiding his studies as he no longer had to read by kerosene lamplight.

After Striped College, Glenn transferred to Smith-Cotton High School in Sedalia. He tried out for

the football team, but after absorbing several hard hits, decided to focus on less painful

extracurricular activities, and eventually served as Editor-in-Chief of the 1947 yearbook.

Between chores, studies, activities, and part-time jobs, Glenn also found time to earn his Eagle

Scout Badge.

Glenn planned to work at a paint store after graduation and had not considered college, but his

Methodist minister intervened and arranged a visit by a representative of Central College (now

Central Methodist University) in Fayette, Missouri. Glenn received a scholarship from Central

and attended for two years. During one summer, he worked on the grain harvest as it moved

northward through western Kansas, and during the next, for the U.S. Forest Service in the

Sierra Nevada mountains, fighting the blister rust tree infestation. In 1950, he enrolled at

Southern Methodist University (SMU) in Dallas, Texas, where he completed a BA degree in

business administration. More notably, at SMU he met Veronica Martin (Ronnie), the love of his

life and his wife of 67 years.

Immediately upon graduation, Glenn began four years as a B-29 and C-124 pilot in the Air

Force, where he developed a love of flying and gained a treasure trove of formative

experiences, lifelong friends, and exciting stories that he would later tell to his children and

grandchildren (including one about a seat-of-the-pants night landing in Bermuda on the last

possible pass before he would have been forced to bail out, related in his typically understated

fashion). Glenn and Ronnie decided to get married as soon as he received his first commission.

The commission was issued in December 1952, and Glenn became a 2nd Lieutenant and got

his wings. True to plan, Glenn and Ronnie were married at Trinity Episcopal Church in Tulsa a

few weeks later, on January 3, 1953. They began a lifetime of shared love and effort as they

moved around the country with the Strategic Air Command, started and raised a family, and as

Glenn embarked on his business career.

Glenn joined Phillips Petroleum in 1956 with the Treasury Department in Bartlesville, Oklahoma.

There were six transfers over the next several years before Glenn returned to Bartlesville, where

most of his next ten years were spent on international finance, primarily related to Phillips’

operations in South America. He played an important role in arranging financing for the Ekofisk

Oil Field in the Norwegian sector of the North Sea, which remains one of the most important

fields in the North Sea. Glenn was promoted to Chief Financial Officer and became a member of

the Board of Directors and Executive Committee. The mid-1980s were a turbulent time in the oil

industry and for Phillips in particular. Phillips withstood two takeover attempts, first by Texas

oilman T. Boone Pickens and then by Carl Icahn, the New York financier, during which Phillips

acquired sizable debt. Glenn was instrumental in arranging the financing needed to maintain

Phillips’ independence, and in 1985, he was elected President and Chief Operating Officer,

serving alongside Pete Silas, Chief Executive Officer. Glenn retired in 1991 at the age of 62

after a career spanning 35 years.

Both during and after his career with Phillips, Glenn was a devoted supporter of the Bartlesville

community and other causes that were important to him. In Bartlesville, Glenn was deeply

involved with the First United Methodist Church, OK Mozart, the Bartlesville Public Library, the

Boys and Girls Club, Boy Scouts, and the Price Tower Arts Center. Glenn was particularly proud

of his local and national awards from the Boy Scouts, including the Silver Buffalo and

Distinguished Eagle Scout Awards. In 2021, the Price Tower Arts Center exhibited “The Love of

Art: The Cox Collection,” celebrating the art that Glenn and Ronnie collected during his

retirement years. Glenn and Ronnie were inducted into the Bartlesville Hall of Fame in 2013, in

recognition of their contributions to the community. Among his many additional honors, he was

inducted into the Oklahoma Hall of Fame, where he was delighted to be included with Gene

Autry, his favorite cowboy.

Glenn was a major supporter of Central Methodist University (CMU), the institution he credits

for broadening his horizons, and he served CMU as a member and as Chairman of the Board of

Trustees for many years. He also served on the Board of Trustees for SMU, the Oklahoma State

Board of Regents for Higher Education, and numerous corporate boards including Bank of

Oklahoma, Helmerich & Payne, Cimarex, Union Texas Petroleum, and Williams Companies. To

Ronnie’s consternation, Glenn piloted his single-engine Cessna to board functions and to their

Colorado summer home whenever possible.

Glenn was a great dad, encouraging and supportive of his children. As is common, from the

perspective of an adolescent, he could seem annoyingly certain, but with maturity and the

passage of time, all of his children came to deeply appreciate his conviction, humor, vision, love,

and guidance. He is beloved by his five grandchildren, and recently became a

great-grandfather. He has inspired his children and grandchildren with how he treats other

people, truly embodying the Golden Rule.

Glenn lived at CC Young Senior Living in Dallas from 2021 until his death. His family would like

to thank CC Young and the talented caregivers who helped Glenn enjoy his life there.

Glenn is survived by son Martin and his wife Sherry Tucker (Dallas, TX), son Grant and his wife

Elizabeth Sager (Redding, CT), daughter Cecelia and her wife Shelly Skeen (Dallas, TX), five

grandchildren (Avery, Helen, Ella, Sam, and Mateo), and great-grandchild Ronan. A memorial

service to celebrate Glenn’s life is scheduled to take place at Bartlesville First Church on

November 18, 2023 at 2:00 pm.

In celebration of Glenn’s life, please consider donations to the Bartlesville Community

Foundation (bartlesvillecf.org).