Minister who drowned at Lake Elsinore while rescuing struggling child ID’d – Celebration of Life planned

August 5, 2021 Trevor Montgomery

LAKE ELSINORE, Calif., — Authorities have identified a man who drowned at Lake Elsinore after reportedly jumping into the water to help save his struggling and frightened son Saturday afternoon, July 31. Although the victim managed to help his son into a nearby boat, he slipped under the water and never resurfaced. Dive Team members found the victim’s body the next day, following an extensive and exhaustive search the night of the man’s drowning.

RCNS has learned the victim, since identified as 59-year-old, Fontana resident, Myron Quincy Cox, was a minister at the Shield of Faith Christian Center of Ontario. Cox’s family and friends are holding a celebration of life for Cox tomorrow, and all in the community are invited and encouraged to attend. (See Attached Flier.)

LEADING THE RCNS HEADLINES:
Out of jail and awaiting trial involving same victim, Riverside man kills girlfriend
Wanted San Jacinto felon arrested after lengthy high-speed pursuit has long criminal history
Attempting to leap from moving car during Riverside pursuit, man fatally injured
San Jacinto man dies after fiery crash into tree in Temecula
Man, 37, dies after Jurupa Valley rollover crash

Lake Elsinore Boat Patrol Deputies were notified of an adult male who jumped off of a boat, without a life vest, and entered the water to assist a struggling juvenile shortly after 3:30 p.m., Riverside Sheriff’s Sergeant Brad Foster has since reported.

Myron Cox, 59, of Ontario, pictured here with his family, drowned while rescuing one of his young sons from Lake Elsinore Saturday afternoon. His body was discovered the following day. Cox was a minister at the Shield of Faith Christian Center of Ontario and his family and friends are holding a celebration of life for him in Ontario tomorrow.

Responding deputies learned Cox had jumped into the deep water of the lake’s “High-Speed Zone” in the middle of the lake, after a juvenile member of the group he was with began struggling in the water.

“After entering the water, (Cox) appeared to be in distress,” explained Foster. “He was able to get the juvenile back to the boat but disappeared under the water and never resurfaced.”

Sheriff’s Dive Team members spent the next several hours combing the lake Saturday night, but they were unable to locate Cox. They resumed the search on Sunday morning, eventually finding his lifeless body around noon. A subsequent coroner’s release indicated his time of death was not known.

SEE ALSO: Silver State Hotshots firefighter killed after leap from Lake Britton Bridge “died doing what he loved”

Saturday’s incident was the second drowning in Lake Elsinore this summer, following the June drowning of a 38-year-old Los Angeles man who never resurfaced after he got off his jet ski and entered the water to retrieve a dropped item. He had not been wearing a safety vest or other floatation device and his body was located two days after he was last seen.

native advertising

Contact the writer: [email protected]

Trevor Montgomery, 50, moved in 2017 to the Intermountain area of Shasta County from Riverside County and runs Riverside County News Source (RCNS) and Shasta County News Source (SCNS).

Additionally, he writes or has written for several other news organizations; including Riverside County-based newspapers Valley News, Valley Chronicle, Anza Valley Outlook, and Hemet & San Jacinto Chronicle; the Bonsall/Fallbrook Village News in San Diego County; and Mountain Echo in Shasta County. He is also a regular contributor to Thin Blue Line TV and Law Enforcement News Network and has had his stories featured on news stations throughout the Southern California and North State regions.

Trevor spent 10 years in the U.S. Army as an Orthopedic Specialist before joining the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department in 1998. He was medically retired after losing his leg, breaking his back, and suffering both spinal cord and brain injuries in an off-duty accident. (Click here to see segment of Discovery Channel documentary of Trevor’s accident.)

During his time with the sheriff’s department, Trevor worked at several different stations; including Robert Presley Detention Center, Southwest Station in Temecula, Hemet/Valle Vista Station, Ben Clark Public Safety Training Center, and Lake Elsinore Station; along with other locations.

Trevor’s assignments included Corrections, Patrol, DUI Enforcement, Boat and Personal Water-Craft based Lake Patrol, Off-Road Vehicle Enforcement, Problem Oriented Policing Team, and Personnel/Background Investigations. He finished his career while working as a Sex Crimes and Child Abuse Investigator and was a court-designated expert in child abuse and child sex-related crimes.

Trevor has been married for more than 30 years and was a foster parent to more than 60 children over 13 years. He is now an adoptive parent and his “fluid family” includes 13 children and 18 grandchildren.