Joseph Cox Finley

March 5th, 1946 - April 18th, 2024

Joseph Finley was a brilliant man with great determination and pride. Growing up in Greenville, South Carolina, He was a star student and track athlete - breaking the state record in the shot put while in high school. Mr. Finley attended West Point on an athletic scholarship as a member of the Army track team, graduating in 1968. He obtained the rank of Captain in the Army and did a tour in the Vietnam War. Upon returning from Vietnam, Joseph attended the University of Oregon School of Law, graduating in 1974.

After law school, he moved to Seattle where he would begin his career as an attorney and raise his three children with their mother, Gretchen Hawley, whom he met and married while in the Army in 1969. (The two would later amicably divorce in 1997.) After practicing law for several decades, always ambitious, Joseph then pursued several entrepreneurial endeavors - ranging from Arabian horses to modern art - which took him across the US and Europe. Always fond of the time he spent in Eugene while in law school, he returned to the area in 2011 and lived there for his remaining days.

Joseph was known for being impeccably dressed, a great listener, and for his wicked sense of humor. He was a big fan of football, baseball, tennis and many other sports. But his favorite thing to do was spend time with (as well as be a steadfast cheerleader for) his three kids, Sam, Sara, and Caitlin.

In addition to his children, Joseph is survived by countless relatives in South Carolina who admire him to this day. Memorial services will be announced at a later date.