Robert Joseph Knox

Robert Joseph Knox, 89, of Greensboro, passed away on March 7, 2026, after a short illness. Born in Salisbury, North Carolina, on March 4, 1937, Bob graduated from Boyden High School in 1955 and earned a degree in industrial relations from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1959. At UNC, he was a member of Sigma Chi Fraternity and the U.S. Air Force ROTC.

Following graduation, Bob served in the Air Force as a second lieutenant, rising to the rank of captain by the time he left in 1967. He met and married Priscilla Kuykendall in San Antonio, Texas, in 1961. During his military career, he was stationed at bases across the country, including in Texas, New Hampshire, and Nebraska, where he flew the Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker. In 1967, he began a long career as a pilot for Pan American World Airways, flying out of Berlin, Germany; New York City; and Miami, Florida. He was proud to have served as co-pilot on the airline’s final flight on December 4, 1991.

While still flying for Pan Am, Bob and Priscilla founded Priba Furniture in Greensboro in 1972, a business now led by their son, Scott. Bob was preceded in death by his parents, George and Anne Knox, and his brother, George Cowan Knox. He is survived by his wife of 65 years, Priscilla Knox; their sons and families, including Robert Joseph Knox Jr. and his wife Harriette of Beaufort, South Carolina, and their son Davis of Washington, D.C.; and Jeffrey Scott Knox and his wife Kim of Greensboro, along with their children Slater of Fuquay-Varina, North Carolina; Reid of Greensboro; and Elizabeth of Savannah, Georgia.