‘What comes from the heart touches the heart’: Livestock donated to raise funds for family of James Cox

ABILENE, Texas (KTAB/KRBC) — After community icon and owner of Premier Martial Arts, James Cox, suddenly passed away, members of his martial arts school came together to help raise money for the Cox family.

We can never know the effects that we have had on others after we’re gone, but the sudden passing of Premier Martial Arts owner, James Cox, has sent a wave of bereavement that stretches across the Big Country. While many are still mourning the loss of Cox, they recently received a little bit of relief from their grief when livestock was donated for the purpose of being sold at the Abilene Livestock Auction, with the proceeds from the sale going towards relief funding for the Cox family.

School Manager and Program Director for Premier Martial Arts, Vanassa Russell, was present for the auction and spoke about how the last moment she spent with James as she left the martial arts school one night is forever embedded in her memory.

“My last memory, I’m glad, will be the one that sticks with me. When I left that night… I left with him in front of the classroom doing what he loved… and I loved seeing that.”

Another whose life was forever changed by Cox and who was present at the auction was Aaron Cerda, who studied martial arts under James Cox since he was 10 years old. Now 35, Cerda has maintained his martial arts career and is even one of the instructors for Premier Martial Arts. He spoke about the inspiring words that James shared with him after Aaron received a life-altering diagnosis.

“I was diagnosed with bone cancer, and I told him, and he said, ‘It’s just another fight. You got this.’ I used to be one of his pro fighters, and so it was the same thing. It’s just another fight. You got this. That memory in that office with him… has changed everything.”

Cerda went on to explain that the connection between him and James went beyond the student/master dynamic and that he will carry with him the many lessons that Cox taught him over the years.

“He was like a father figure to me. I’ve been with him for 25 years. I didn’t really know my dad, so he stepped in and took that role. He used to say, ‘What comes from the heart touches heart.’ So, if his words can still flow through me to other people, then he’s never really gone.”

James Cox’s loved ones raised $1,000 to help out the Cox family during the auction. For more information on how you can support the Cox family, call Premiere Martial Arts at (325) 676-2696 or visit their website. Information for Venmo donations that go directly to the family can be found on James Cox’s Facebook page.