Miriam "Toby" Cox

Miriam "Toby" Aline Torres Cox left her mortal body on September 8, 2026 at the age of 100 years old. A courageous woman whose patriotism led her to travel the world in support of her family and country, Miriam's centenarian status was only a small part of her story. Born in New Orleans on January 3, 1926, her lifetime saw the transition from phone as household appliance to a modern-day necessity, the shift from privies to indoor plumbing, the move from broadsheets to blogs, and the country transform from Great Depression to World War II to Nuclear Age to Vietnam War to Cold War to Space Race to Information Age to Globalization. Music provided a soundtrack to her household, loyalty to America shined a guiding beacon, and her Catholic faith steadied her full life. A young girl in Algiers, Miriam was the daughter of Matilda Edna Fortmayer and Thomas Joseph Armand Torres, their second child in a family of two girls (sister Lillian) and three boys (brothers Maurice, Hiram, and Harold). She always remembered the children she went to school with, using their names as a memory tester as she aged in life, which spoke to how much she valued her education and the parents who prioritized it even during the Great Depression. That generation learned to scrimp and save, techniques that lasted all her life and that she passed down to her children and grandchildren. Her family was full of musicians, and Miriam loved to play piano, sing, ride the streetcar, and spend afternoons in the Quarter. Her brothers and sister often played pranks on each other and contributed to the household tasks. Miriam became "Toby" because she cheered so hard and so proudly for a local baseball player who she thought was named Toby - the nickname stuck. Many friends came to call her only that. She graduated from Behrman High School and quickly began working for the telephone company as a switch board operator, a highly valued job as World War II changed a nation. She met her husband Vanoy "Jack" W. Cox on the naval base in New Orleans. He was working as a courier while the sailors awaited their ship to arrive, and she was taking the ferry across the Mississippi to work as a clerk in the telephone office. Toby's boisterous, local girl personality compared to Jack's quiet, farmhand steadiness always surprised people when they met the couple, but the two exuded bravery as they began their life together through active service in a post-war world. Shortly after their honeymoon at Niagara Falls, Jack was sent to Korea, and so began their young marriage. Their first duty station together was on the Navy base in Yokosuka, Japan, where Toby gave birth to her first child, Michelle Edna Cox (McNerney) and spent time getting to know the local community - a time in her life she looked on fondly. While Jack often traveled with the ship, the Navy Wives were a tight knit community who helped each other raise their children, babysat while someone picked up odd jobs, spent afternoons baking together, played cards side by side, and shared days packing or unpacking depending on who was going or coming. Traveling back to “the States,” they were stationed in San Diego, California, where Toby gave birth to their second child Robert “Bobby” Michael Cox. They quickly moved to their next duty station in Great Lakes, Illinois, where Jack "pushed boots.” The cold was her main memory of time passed in the bitter winters, but the family's endurance was rewarded by their next assignment: Hawaii. In Hawaii, the children thrived and Miriam learned to drive. While the ships were at sea, she made lifelong friends whom she kept up with even after leaving the islands to head back to Illinois, this time in Springfield, where Toby found her love of teaching. With 50 students in a first-grade class, she named them all after the United States - “Alabama, line up!” - and her students loved her unique approach to classroom management. When Jack requested the East coast for his next tour of duty, he got Holy Loch, Scotland instead. Without a base in-country, the family lived in the tiny village of Dunoon. Here, Toby cooked on a coal stove and bundled young Michelle and Bobby in multiple blankets to keep them warm at night. Her time in Scotland was, frankly, miserable, but it did provide opportunities to travel Europe and gave her the first chance to see Vatican City up close. The next assignment shifted the family to Puerto Rico, on Ramey Air Force base, surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and sandy beaches. Miriam decorated cakes for military events, fired ceramics, rode horses, earned her college degree at Interamerican University of Puerto Rico (IAU), and enjoyed square dancing with other families even while the Vietnam War pushed Navy families to their limits. A life of service was part of her love for Jack, though, and she leaned on the comfort of the community on base. When Jack was called to Vietnam, he moved the family back to the States, where the second half of her life would unfold. Miriam became a matron of Orlando, Florida's Lancaster Park community. She and Jack moved into their "forever home" in the heart of Orlando before theme parks dominated the citrus grove community. Mills Avenue was a picturesque street with brick roads, sidewalks, and huge oak trees. Their little gingerbread house is where they set down roots, Jack retired from the Navy, their children graduated high school, and Toby set up the house of her dreams. She continued to teach elementary school, tutor neighborhood kids, host crafting parties and knitting circles, played Bunco, and earned her Master’s Degree. She became a beloved member of St. James Catholic Church. She welcomed her brothers and sister, cousins, in-laws, and eventually grandchildren to her home where they often sat two or three huge tables for Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter. Toby always found ways to fill her house, be it with neighbors, friends, or family. She and Jack often traveled to Dalton, Georgia, to visit Jack's family, and to New Orleans to visit hers. They also found joy in Mississippi River steamboat cruises and road trips to nearly every State and Canada. Toby traveled overseas regularly with tour groups and family, determined to see the world on her terms now that she wasn't carting small children around in tow. She loved her community, which largely remained unchanged even as Orlando flourished in the 40 years she lived there. After Jack passed away in 2010, Toby moved to Fanning Springs, Florida, and became the grand dame of the River Walk community where she lived in her own home down the street from her daughter and son-in-law, Mac. Here she continued hosting highly competitive card games, enjoyed attending Kentucky Derby parties, and made fast friends with many of the established residents. Her love of Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy still carried on like clockwork, and she enjoyed taking all day to read the newspaper and play the crossword. Toby's ability to hold court was evident when she turned 90 and the community came out for a huge birthday celebration before she and her family traveled to New Orleans for a second celebration visiting all her favorite spots. In her last five years, "Ms Toby" was cared for by the incredible nursing team and staff at Tri-County Rehabilitation Center. Their care was evident in her final week at the facility when so many care team members and family members came to wish her well on her final travel adventure. Miriam leaves behind an entire family tree of extended loved ones, nieces, and nephews, including her immediate family: her brother Hiram Torres; her daughter Michelle Edna Cox McNerney with granddaughter Maegan Aline McNerney Azar (husband Thomas J Azar III and great grandson Tristan); her son Robert "Bobby" Michael Cox and daughter-in-law Debbie Fox Cox with grandson Jacob Cox (wife Cristen Cox and great grandsons Jaden and Grant) and Cheri Cox Potter (husband Ted Potter and great grandchildren Corbin and Adalyn). Preceding her by one week in death is her son-in-law Michael “Mac” Patrick McNerney who is awaiting her in the next life with an entire package of mini-Butterfingers. The Saints watch over her now and Heaven is better with one more courageous angel. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to St. Andrew Catholic Community at https://standrew-orlando.org/online-giving/ where Miriam taught for several years. A funeral mass will be held on Saturday, September 19 at 11:00 AM at St. John the Evangelist Church in Chiefland, Florida 32626. Miriam will be interred at Arlington National Cemetery with her beloved sailor Jack.

Miriam "Toby" Cox

January 3, 1926 - September 8, 2026