Kelli Ann Cox Portrait Memorial Bronze Statue - UNT
Kelli Ann Cox, portrait bronze monument at University of North Texas, Denton
A University of North Texas student vanished in broad daylight. Then years later she was found murdered.
A Monumental portrait bronze statue honors Kelli's life. And presents the University pledge stating: "Safety for students is just as important as educating them."
The Commission:
Tom White was approached by G. Brint Ryan, as Chairman of the University of North Texas Board of Regents. And was asked to create a monument of Kelli Ann Cox. Brint wanted a memorial portrait bronze sculpture of her. It was placed on the campus of UNT in Denton, Texas. Mr. Ryan was familiar with Tom’s work as a master portrait sculptor. Because Tom had previously created bronze statues of the Ryan family for a park in Big Spring, Texas.
Kelli’s Story:
Kelli, a UNT student, went missing from a school field trip to the Denton County Jail in 1997. She was a single mom studying psychology and criminal justice. Students had been asked to keep their keys locked in their cars during the tour of the jail. After the tour, Kelli was unable to get her key out of the hide-a-key. Thus, she called for assistance. When her boyfriend arrived, she had vanished in broad daylight. Some 19 years after her disappearance, her body was discovered. She had been murdered by a serial killer who lead police to her remains among several others in Brazoria County, Texas.
Developing the Memorial:
Tom and Marcey talked at length with Kelli’s Mom, Jan Bynum, about Kelli. They discovered that Kelli’s greatest joy in life was being a mom to her young daughter, Alexis. Therefore Tom sought to capture the joy between mom and daughter in the sculpture.
After her mother’s disappearance, as a child, Alexis released balloons up to heaven every year. She hoped that her mom would return some day. When Kelli’s body was discovered 19 years later, the door of their home was covered in balloons for Kelli. They included a heart-shaped balloon. Tom decided to incorporate the balloons as symbols of their endurnig love. He shows Kelli holding tightly to her little girl, Alexis and flying balloons together. …Tom & Marcey White
Her Killer:
In 2021, The Oklahoman reported that William Lewis Reece, 61, was on trial for the strangulation of a young woman. Oklahoma County District Judge Susan Stallings allowed prosecutors to put on evidence linking the defendant to three other deaths in Texas. Those deaths included Kelli Ann Cox, and DNA evidence linked him to several other murders.
It was later found that Reece had been sentenced to 25 years for a kidnapping and rape conviction in Texas. Because of a technicality, he only served nine years. Therefore, he was free on that fateful day in 1997 that ended Kelli’s life. He was on trial, again as a serial killer, and prosecutors were seeking the death penalty. Because of that, his attorneys were able to offer a plea deal not to execute him if he disclosed the whereabouts of bodies for other missing victims. Those victims included Kelli Ann Cox.
Reece directed investigators to an area not far from the “Highway to Hell” where they would find bodies. At a nearby old farm, investigators found the remains of Kelli Ann in a shallow grave.
Her Family:
“I can be comforted that I know she’s in God’s arms,” said her mother Jan Bynum. “And I know that she’s not in harm’s way every minute of every day. Now I can bring her home and put her to rest the way I want to.”
Jan and her husband, Nyles, adopted and raised Alexis. The precious toddler Kelli Ann left behind is a young woman who followed in her mother’s footsteps. She became a student at the University of North Texas in Denton.
