Cape Mayor Fox returns to duties after bout of coronavirus

Cape Girardeau’s mayor, Dr. Bob Fox, was diagnosed with COVID on Nov. 9 and has resumed his duties as the city’s top elected official.

“I’ve still got a cough now and then, (but) I’m thankful that we didn’t have the severe respiratory symptoms that are part of the disease,” said Fox, 72, whose wife, Connie, also contracted the coronavirus.

“I had more digestive stuff with this, which some sufferers have and some don’t,” he added.

The couple did not require hospitalization and coalesced at home.

“I had a walleye fishing trip scheduled on my birthday (on Nov. 18) but that got pushed back, of course,” Fox said.

Journey back to health

“It’s like you don’t have any energy for 5-10 days,” said Fox, who took office 2 1/2 years ago.

“I lost 10 pounds, and you don’t feel like eating because nothing tastes good,” Fox said, noting COVID caused he and his wife to lose their senses of taste and smell, which the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention reports is one of the indicators of having the disease.

“Anything I ate made me nauseous and it was that way for about a week,” said Fox, who along with his son, Dr. Jim Fox, operates Fox Family Dental in Cape Girardeau.

“I kept trying to drink lots of water and iced tea (because) it’s important not to get dehydrated,” he added.

Fox said his wife’s recovery has been a bit more rapid than his.

“She’s been beginning to smell and taste again, so I’m hoping I’m not far behind her,” he said.

Lessons learned

Fox said it is a hard thing to accept that you can contract COVID even if it seems you’ve done everything correctly to protect yourself.

“No matter how cautious you are, you just don’t know,” he said.

“There are all sorts of ways (COVID) can be transferred,” Fox said, noting one particular account that got his attention.

“I’ve heard people say you can get COVID from money,” he said.

“You might get the virus on your hands by handling currency and inadvertently, you end up touching your face,” Fox continued.

“I don’t know how I got it or how Connie got it,” Fox said, adding that well before the pair tested positive, his wife was careful when the couple went out to eat.

“We have sanitizing wipes in our cars and when we’d go to grab a bite to eat, (Connie) would wipe the salt and pepper shakers, wipe off the table, everything,” the first-term mayor said.

“Mask, wash your hands a lot and do everything you can to follow CDC guidelines,” said Fox, who served two years as Ward 5 city councilman before succeeding Harry Rediger in the mayor’s office in April 2018.

“I feel pretty good (now),” he said, adding, “I’m blessed.”