Jane Helms Knox

She was a graduate of Broughton High School and East Carolina University, where she received her teaching degree. She later received her Master’s in Education from Liberty University. From a young age, Jane would play “school” with the neighborhood children in the basement of her family home. Her sister, Nancy, credits her with teaching her how to read prior to entering first grade.

After graduation she returned to Raleigh where she began her distinguished teaching career at E.C. Brooks Elementary School. She found her calling as a third-grade teacher at St. Timothy’s School and later became the principal of St. Timothy’s.

Upon her return to Raleigh, Jane met Charlie Knox, a young man just discharged from the Air Force who was starting a career at IBM. Jane and Charlie fell in love and married in 1969. They loved to travel, especially on cruises, and loved supporting Rob & Jen in their endeavors, whether it was Rob in the Broughton High School Marching Band, or Jen playing sports. They also loved seeing their grandchildren grow up.

Jane was the founding principal of Faith Lutheran School which grew from 25 to 150 students in only its first three years. While at Faith, Jane was named a National Distinguished Principal by the National Association of Elementary School Principals and the U.S. Department of Education. She also served honorably on the North Carolina Textbook Commission evaluating thousands of textbooks for consideration by the State Board of Education.

Jane enjoyed playing handbells with her church and was an excellent pianist. She continued to play the piano even through her dementia and brought joy to the other residents of her assisted living facility.

Jane was a life-long animal lover, which led to her always having never less than one pet at any time. She grew up riding horses, and she taught Jen to ride Wildfire, a Shetland pony, at the age of 6. Many adventures surrounded her love of horses including buying two horses for the price of one (Glory & Magic), buying a beautiful Morgan horse named Justin at midnight on a Saturday night, and riding the trails by the Neuse River near “the farm.”

After a stray cat showed up at the farm one day and had kittens, the Knox family often had more than one cat living at home with them because “they’re just so cute.” Jane also loved dogs, especially Cricket. She also had two zebra finches at one point, but that was not one of her better decisions. She always wanted a pot-bellied pig, but Charlie would not give in to that, so she settled for collecting many, many, many pig figurines, pictures, and decorations.

And finally, there is Lexie, her long-haired cat, whose voice she heard only a few minutes before she passed away, and who gave her such comfort during the last years of her life.

Jane is survived by her children, Charles Robert Knox, Jr. (Krystin) and Jennifer Jane Knox, and her grandchildren, Maggie, Ryan, Cooper, and Alex. She is also survived by her sister, Nancy Helms, and brother Charles Helms (Kathleen) and her nieces and nephews Mike (Rachel), Ellen, Katie (Andy), Amelia (Bill), and Julie and her great-nieces and nephews Erin, Beatrix, Conrad, and Drew.

Jane is pre-deceased by her parents, Senator and Mrs. Jesse Helms, and her husband of 48 years, Charlie.

The family is grateful for the care Jane received from Marie Montague, the professionals at Arosa, especially Meike Weist and Carolyn Nelson, the nurses in the intensive care unit at the Rex Heart and Vascular Center, and Heartland Hospice, especially Abby Guzzo.

A visitation will be held from 5-7pm on Tuesday, September 3, 2024 at Brown-Wynne Funeral Home at 300 St. Mary’s Street in Raleigh. A service will be held at 11am on Wednesday, September 4, 2024 at Our Savior Lutheran Church, 1500 Glenwood Avenue.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Jesse Helms Center, 3910 US Hwy 74 East, Wingate, NC 28174 and Our Savior Lutheran Church, 1500 Glenwood Avenue, Raleigh, NC 27608.