Before it became trendy to be labeled an event or party planner, Sue Knox was well-versed in finding sponsors, booking venues and organizing food service for large groups of people. It was all part of what she did as a homemaker, her children said. In the '50s and '60s she was a fixture at the old Hawthorne Elementary School in Smyrna, helping plan whatever was going on, and doing the same at home.
“Every year she basically coordinated the Halloween carnival,” said Jackie Cash, her only daughter, who lives in Powder Springs. “She would make calls to raise money, arrange what was to be in the booths where we’d play the games and things like that.”
Richard Knox, one of her five sons, joked, “Oh she was the chairman of the carnival.”
“And the principal of the school just loved mom because she’d help out with anything,” said Mr. Knox, who lives in Hiram. “She was just one of the sweetest, giving people I know.”
Sue Langley Knox, of Marietta, died Sunday at home from complications associated with multiple health problems. She was 85. A funeral service is planned for 2 p.m. Tuesday in the chapel of Smyrna First Baptist Church. Burial will follow at Georgia Memorial Park Cemetery, Marietta. Carmichael Funeral Home, Smyrna is in charge of arrangements.
Born and raised in Smyrna, Mrs. Knox was one of six children, five of which were girls. At 17, she married Fred M. Knox and the couple had six children of their own, over 17 years. They were married 65 years when he died in 2008.
As her children grew, and her siblings' families grew, the Knox house was rarely empty. The family’s home, which was not far from the school, was the gathering place of choice for her kids and their friends. She also often hosted her nieces and nephews.
“Every one of the cousins will tell you they consider her their second mom,” Mr. Knox said. “Mom and dad always opened their house to the family.”
And she kept up with her ever-expanding family, her son said. Mrs. Knox knew all of her relatives, by name, and how they fit into the family.
“And I’m not talking about just the 61 family members that share her bloodline,” he said. “I’m talking about cousins and relatives way down the line. She knew them all.”
After her children were grown, she didn't settle into retirement from being a homemaker. Her husband, an electrician, started his own company, Knox Electrical Contractors. She served as the company’s vice president and was responsible for the bookkeeping, payroll and other business needs.
Family was tremendously important to Mrs. Knox, so when her father-in-law asked her to plan a reunion for his folks, she gladly accepted the challenge, her daughter said.
“She started planning it in the '50s,” Mrs. Cash said. “It was so well done that it became an annual event. And when she couldn’t do it anymore, I took it over.”
Mr. Knox said his sister didn’t have to reinvent the wheel when she took over their father’s reunion, their mother’s planning was still working.
“There would be 70 or 80 people showing up, just huge turnouts,” he said. “She set a standard over time and everybody knew what to bring and what to expect.”
Mrs. Knox is also survived by four additional sons, Larry Knox of Marietta, the Rev. Freddie Knox of Powder Springs, John Knox of Marietta and James Knox of Marietta; sister, Ruby Langley Hunter of Marietta; 14 grandchildren; 23 great-grandchildren; and one great-great-grandchild.
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