BY JOHN PATTERSON
SALISBURY POST

An 84-year-old Rockwell woman returning to her home at a Rockwell retirement center died Monday night after an accident at Jake Alexander Boulevard and East Innes Street.

Neola Cozart was riding in the front passenger seat of her son-in-law’s 1996 Ford Explorer. Salisbury Police said a 1996 Dodge, driven by 18-year-old Jason Michael Miller, 1885 Surratt Road, Richfield, slammed into the passenger side of the Explorer.

Other drivers at the scene said Miller – traveling north on Jake Alexander Boulevard – ran a red light at the intersection, but Salisbury Police have not yet filed any charges in the accident, according to reports. Neither vehicle was speeding, police said..

Stephen and Peggy Whicker, Cozart’s son-in-law and daughter, were taking Cozart back to The Meadows of Rockwell Retirement Center when the wreck happened around 5:30 p.m. Monday. Stephen Whicker said this morning that he and his wife, who live at 113 N. Clinton St., China Grove, had taken Cozart to Rowan Regional Medical Center for a physical and then out to dinner.

The Whickers were treated at Rowan Regional and released.

‘‘My wife (Peggy Whicker) had some minor head injuries and the regular bumps and bruises,’’ Stephen Whicker said.

Miller was also treated at the hospital and released.

Cozart was airlifted from the scene to Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center in Winston-Salem. She later died at the hospital, Stephen Whicker said.

Cozart, who was married to the late Clarence Alexander ‘‘Dolly’’ Cozart, was a member of Ursinus United Church of Christ and was well-liked by both residents and employees at The Meadows.

‘‘She was just a very pleasant lady,’’ said Lori Hahn, assistant supervisor of The Meadows. ‘‘Anything we ever did for her got a ‘thank you’ ... She was just so sweet and pleasant.’’

Cozart, who moved to The Meadows in July 1996, was an active participant in the retirement center’s activities, even though she had to use a wheelchair.

Hahn said the center’s residents learned of Cozart’s death Monday night and were ‘‘shocked.’’

‘‘We all knew her and couldn’t believe it when we heard ... She’ll be missed.’’

Cozart was retired from Cannon Mills and had lived in an apartment and then at The Meadows since her husband, the founder and president of Cozart Lumber Co., died in 1984.

‘‘She was a very loving and caring person, very active in the church,’’ Stephen Whicker said. ‘‘She was well-liked and known in Rockwell. She had lived there pretty much her whole life.’’