Publication: The Roanoke Times (Virginia)
Published: May 15, 2002
Page: B2
Headline: Obit - Cook, Jack Wells
Cook, Jack Wells, 73, of Radford, owner of Cook's Clean Center and Cook's Service Cleaners, died Monday, May 13, 2002, at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center in Winston-Salem, N.C., as a result of complications from surgery. He is survived by his wife, Cherokee Roop Cook; a son and daughter-in-law, Jack Wells Cook, II and Joanne Piraneo Cook; a daughter and son-in-law, Virginia Cook Doud and Ralph B. Doud, III; a daughter and son-in-law, Gail Cook DeVilbiss and John Grady DeVilbiss; a daughter and son-in-law, Becky Cook Mann and William Scott Mann; a daughter and son-in-law, Barbara Cook Turk and D. Michael Turk; and 13 grandchildren, Jacqueline, Chris and Clinton Cook, Brigham and Evan Doud, Victoria, John and David DeVilbiss, Mark, Michael and Will Mann, Matthew and Adam Turk all of Radford. He is also survived by his brother and sister-in-law, Dick A. Cook and Frankie Holt Cook of Penhook, Va.; a brother and sister-in-law, Billy R. Cook and JoAnn Irby Cook of Radford; mother-in-law, Stella Roop Lawrence of Christiansburg and a sister-in-law, Joyce Roop Testerman of Radford; and 17 nieces and nephews. A Celebration of Life Service conducted by Dr. Gina Rhea will be held at 7 p.m. Thursday, May 16, at the First Christian Church, 400 Tyler Avenue in Radford. The family will receive friends immediately following the service. In lieu of flowers the family requests memorial donations be made to First Christian Church. Horne Funeral Service in Christiansburg is serving the Cook family. (382-2612)
Publication: The Roanoke Times (Virginia)
Published: May 16, 2002
Author: Paul Dellinger, The Roanoke Times
Page: NRV2
Headline: Cleaner Owner Had An Early Aptitude For Business - "It Was The Greatest Gift To Be Married To Him" Jack Cook started being a businessman in grade school, when he would rebuild old bicycles and sell them to his friends. By his early teens, he was hauling produce to Radford to sell off the back of his truck. As a high school freshman, he operated his own filling station and bought and sold some cars.
He got into the laundry and cleaning business at age 18, and built a company that now has outlets in Radford, Christiansburg, Wytheville and Marion. Cook, 73, died Monday at a hospital in Winston-Salem, N.C., of complications from surgery.
"He was constantly making something from nothing," said Cherokee Cook, his widow, with whom he shared a Radford Chamber of Commerce Business Person of the Year Award in 1999. "He could figure out almost any mechanical problem."
He and some classmates at Radford High School built an airplane as part of a project, she said, and he learned to fly it. During his time in high school, she said, the principal would frequently motion him out of class and other students would think he was in trouble. But what it usually involved was somebody getting in touch with Cook over one of his business ventures.
His father became ill in the 1940s and Jack Cook liquidated his other ventures and concentrated on the laundry and cleaning enterprise his parents had bought. It dates back almost a century, starting as Radford Steam Laundry and known as New Radford Laundry until the 1960s when the name was changed to Cook's Clean Center and Cook's Service Cleaners.
"He was hard to work for," said Cherokee Cook, who started doing clerical work for him in 1949. Soon, a relationship developed but, she said, "he wouldn't let me tell any of the employees that we were dating."
After they were married, they started a professional laundry in Galax and put together a dry cleaning plant. They later sold those enterprises and returned to Radford where they started the New River Valley's first coin-operated laundry businesses. Eventually they bought out seven coin laundries or dry cleaning plants.
"He loved to move on, he loved to build, he loved to progress," Cherokee Cook said.
Jack Cook had a visual handicap that hampered his reading, she said. "He learned from looking and watching." When their daughters began taking riding lessons, she said, he decided to learn, too, and ended up keeping horses.
The Cooks built a new restaurant for their business neighbor when an electrical fire had destroyed it in 1984. They were founding members of the Radford University Athletic Association, and contributors to the university's foundation.
"It was the greatest gift to be married to him," Cherokee Cook said. "If you cooked a good meal, he complimented you. If you dressed up and looked good, he complimented you. If you wore a shade of lipstick he didn't like, he told you so and suggested another color."
The couple have five children and 13 grandchildren. A service for Cook will be held at 7 tonight at First Christian Church in Radford. Horne Funeral Service in Christiansburg is handling arrangements.
Paul Dellinger can be reached at (276) 228-4752 or [email protected].
Published: May 15, 2002
Page: B2
Headline: Obit - Cook, Jack Wells
Cook, Jack Wells, 73, of Radford, owner of Cook's Clean Center and Cook's Service Cleaners, died Monday, May 13, 2002, at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center in Winston-Salem, N.C., as a result of complications from surgery. He is survived by his wife, Cherokee Roop Cook; a son and daughter-in-law, Jack Wells Cook, II and Joanne Piraneo Cook; a daughter and son-in-law, Virginia Cook Doud and Ralph B. Doud, III; a daughter and son-in-law, Gail Cook DeVilbiss and John Grady DeVilbiss; a daughter and son-in-law, Becky Cook Mann and William Scott Mann; a daughter and son-in-law, Barbara Cook Turk and D. Michael Turk; and 13 grandchildren, Jacqueline, Chris and Clinton Cook, Brigham and Evan Doud, Victoria, John and David DeVilbiss, Mark, Michael and Will Mann, Matthew and Adam Turk all of Radford. He is also survived by his brother and sister-in-law, Dick A. Cook and Frankie Holt Cook of Penhook, Va.; a brother and sister-in-law, Billy R. Cook and JoAnn Irby Cook of Radford; mother-in-law, Stella Roop Lawrence of Christiansburg and a sister-in-law, Joyce Roop Testerman of Radford; and 17 nieces and nephews. A Celebration of Life Service conducted by Dr. Gina Rhea will be held at 7 p.m. Thursday, May 16, at the First Christian Church, 400 Tyler Avenue in Radford. The family will receive friends immediately following the service. In lieu of flowers the family requests memorial donations be made to First Christian Church. Horne Funeral Service in Christiansburg is serving the Cook family. (382-2612)
Publication: The Roanoke Times (Virginia)
Published: May 16, 2002
Author: Paul Dellinger, The Roanoke Times
Page: NRV2
Headline: Cleaner Owner Had An Early Aptitude For Business - "It Was The Greatest Gift To Be Married To Him" Jack Cook started being a businessman in grade school, when he would rebuild old bicycles and sell them to his friends. By his early teens, he was hauling produce to Radford to sell off the back of his truck. As a high school freshman, he operated his own filling station and bought and sold some cars.
He got into the laundry and cleaning business at age 18, and built a company that now has outlets in Radford, Christiansburg, Wytheville and Marion. Cook, 73, died Monday at a hospital in Winston-Salem, N.C., of complications from surgery.
"He was constantly making something from nothing," said Cherokee Cook, his widow, with whom he shared a Radford Chamber of Commerce Business Person of the Year Award in 1999. "He could figure out almost any mechanical problem."
He and some classmates at Radford High School built an airplane as part of a project, she said, and he learned to fly it. During his time in high school, she said, the principal would frequently motion him out of class and other students would think he was in trouble. But what it usually involved was somebody getting in touch with Cook over one of his business ventures.
His father became ill in the 1940s and Jack Cook liquidated his other ventures and concentrated on the laundry and cleaning enterprise his parents had bought. It dates back almost a century, starting as Radford Steam Laundry and known as New Radford Laundry until the 1960s when the name was changed to Cook's Clean Center and Cook's Service Cleaners.
"He was hard to work for," said Cherokee Cook, who started doing clerical work for him in 1949. Soon, a relationship developed but, she said, "he wouldn't let me tell any of the employees that we were dating."
After they were married, they started a professional laundry in Galax and put together a dry cleaning plant. They later sold those enterprises and returned to Radford where they started the New River Valley's first coin-operated laundry businesses. Eventually they bought out seven coin laundries or dry cleaning plants.
"He loved to move on, he loved to build, he loved to progress," Cherokee Cook said.
Jack Cook had a visual handicap that hampered his reading, she said. "He learned from looking and watching." When their daughters began taking riding lessons, she said, he decided to learn, too, and ended up keeping horses.
The Cooks built a new restaurant for their business neighbor when an electrical fire had destroyed it in 1984. They were founding members of the Radford University Athletic Association, and contributors to the university's foundation.
"It was the greatest gift to be married to him," Cherokee Cook said. "If you cooked a good meal, he complimented you. If you dressed up and looked good, he complimented you. If you wore a shade of lipstick he didn't like, he told you so and suggested another color."
The couple have five children and 13 grandchildren. A service for Cook will be held at 7 tonight at First Christian Church in Radford. Horne Funeral Service in Christiansburg is handling arrangements.
Paul Dellinger can be reached at (276) 228-4752 or [email protected].
Publication: The Roanoke Times (Virginia)
Published: May 15, 2002
Page: B2
Headline: Obit - Cook, Jack Wells
Cook, Jack Wells, 73, of Radford, owner of Cook's Clean Center and Cook's Service Cleaners, died Monday, May 13, 2002, at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center in Winston-Salem, N.C., as a result of complications from surgery. He is survived by his wife, Cherokee Roop Cook; a son and daughter-in-law, Jack Wells Cook, II and Joanne Piraneo Cook; a daughter and son-in-law, Virginia Cook Doud and Ralph B. Doud, III; a daughter and son-in-law, Gail Cook DeVilbiss and John Grady DeVilbiss; a daughter and son-in-law, Becky Cook Mann and William Scott Mann; a daughter and son-in-law, Barbara Cook Turk and D. Michael Turk; and 13 grandchildren, Jacqueline, Chris and Clinton Cook, Brigham and Evan Doud, Victoria, John and David DeVilbiss, Mark, Michael and Will Mann, Matthew and Adam Turk all of Radford. He is also survived by his brother and sister-in-law, Dick A. Cook and Frankie Holt Cook of Penhook, Va.; a brother and sister-in-law, Billy R. Cook and JoAnn Irby Cook of Radford; mother-in-law, Stella Roop Lawrence of Christiansburg and a sister-in-law, Joyce Roop Testerman of Radford; and 17 nieces and nephews. A Celebration of Life Service conducted by Dr. Gina Rhea will be held at 7 p.m. Thursday, May 16, at the First Christian Church, 400 Tyler Avenue in Radford. The family will receive friends immediately following the service. In lieu of flowers the family requests memorial donations be made to First Christian Church. Horne Funeral Service in Christiansburg is serving the Cook family. (382-2612)
Publication: The Roanoke Times (Virginia)
Published: May 16, 2002
Author: Paul Dellinger, The Roanoke Times
Page: NRV2
Headline: Cleaner Owner Had An Early Aptitude For Business - "It Was The Greatest Gift To Be Married To Him" Jack Cook started being a businessman in grade school, when he would rebuild old bicycles and sell them to his friends. By his early teens, he was hauling produce to Radford to sell off the back of his truck. As a high school freshman, he operated his own filling station and bought and sold some cars.
He got into the laundry and cleaning business at age 18, and built a company that now has outlets in Radford, Christiansburg, Wytheville and Marion. Cook, 73, died Monday at a hospital in Winston-Salem, N.C., of complications from surgery.
"He was constantly making something from nothing," said Cherokee Cook, his widow, with whom he shared a Radford Chamber of Commerce Business Person of the Year Award in 1999. "He could figure out almost any mechanical problem."
He and some classmates at Radford High School built an airplane as part of a project, she said, and he learned to fly it. During his time in high school, she said, the principal would frequently motion him out of class and other students would think he was in trouble. But what it usually involved was somebody getting in touch with Cook over one of his business ventures.
His father became ill in the 1940s and Jack Cook liquidated his other ventures and concentrated on the laundry and cleaning enterprise his parents had bought. It dates back almost a century, starting as Radford Steam Laundry and known as New Radford Laundry until the 1960s when the name was changed to Cook's Clean Center and Cook's Service Cleaners.
"He was hard to work for," said Cherokee Cook, who started doing clerical work for him in 1949. Soon, a relationship developed but, she said, "he wouldn't let me tell any of the employees that we were dating."
After they were married, they started a professional laundry in Galax and put together a dry cleaning plant. They later sold those enterprises and returned to Radford where they started the New River Valley's first coin-operated laundry businesses. Eventually they bought out seven coin laundries or dry cleaning plants.
"He loved to move on, he loved to build, he loved to progress," Cherokee Cook said.
Jack Cook had a visual handicap that hampered his reading, she said. "He learned from looking and watching." When their daughters began taking riding lessons, she said, he decided to learn, too, and ended up keeping horses.
The Cooks built a new restaurant for their business neighbor when an electrical fire had destroyed it in 1984. They were founding members of the Radford University Athletic Association, and contributors to the university's foundation.
"It was the greatest gift to be married to him," Cherokee Cook said. "If you cooked a good meal, he complimented you. If you dressed up and looked good, he complimented you. If you wore a shade of lipstick he didn't like, he told you so and suggested another color."
The couple have five children and 13 grandchildren. A service for Cook will be held at 7 tonight at First Christian Church in Radford. Horne Funeral Service in Christiansburg is handling arrangements.
Paul Dellinger can be reached at (276) 228-4752 or [email protected].
Published: May 15, 2002
Page: B2
Headline: Obit - Cook, Jack Wells
Cook, Jack Wells, 73, of Radford, owner of Cook's Clean Center and Cook's Service Cleaners, died Monday, May 13, 2002, at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center in Winston-Salem, N.C., as a result of complications from surgery. He is survived by his wife, Cherokee Roop Cook; a son and daughter-in-law, Jack Wells Cook, II and Joanne Piraneo Cook; a daughter and son-in-law, Virginia Cook Doud and Ralph B. Doud, III; a daughter and son-in-law, Gail Cook DeVilbiss and John Grady DeVilbiss; a daughter and son-in-law, Becky Cook Mann and William Scott Mann; a daughter and son-in-law, Barbara Cook Turk and D. Michael Turk; and 13 grandchildren, Jacqueline, Chris and Clinton Cook, Brigham and Evan Doud, Victoria, John and David DeVilbiss, Mark, Michael and Will Mann, Matthew and Adam Turk all of Radford. He is also survived by his brother and sister-in-law, Dick A. Cook and Frankie Holt Cook of Penhook, Va.; a brother and sister-in-law, Billy R. Cook and JoAnn Irby Cook of Radford; mother-in-law, Stella Roop Lawrence of Christiansburg and a sister-in-law, Joyce Roop Testerman of Radford; and 17 nieces and nephews. A Celebration of Life Service conducted by Dr. Gina Rhea will be held at 7 p.m. Thursday, May 16, at the First Christian Church, 400 Tyler Avenue in Radford. The family will receive friends immediately following the service. In lieu of flowers the family requests memorial donations be made to First Christian Church. Horne Funeral Service in Christiansburg is serving the Cook family. (382-2612)
Publication: The Roanoke Times (Virginia)
Published: May 16, 2002
Author: Paul Dellinger, The Roanoke Times
Page: NRV2
Headline: Cleaner Owner Had An Early Aptitude For Business - "It Was The Greatest Gift To Be Married To Him" Jack Cook started being a businessman in grade school, when he would rebuild old bicycles and sell them to his friends. By his early teens, he was hauling produce to Radford to sell off the back of his truck. As a high school freshman, he operated his own filling station and bought and sold some cars.
He got into the laundry and cleaning business at age 18, and built a company that now has outlets in Radford, Christiansburg, Wytheville and Marion. Cook, 73, died Monday at a hospital in Winston-Salem, N.C., of complications from surgery.
"He was constantly making something from nothing," said Cherokee Cook, his widow, with whom he shared a Radford Chamber of Commerce Business Person of the Year Award in 1999. "He could figure out almost any mechanical problem."
He and some classmates at Radford High School built an airplane as part of a project, she said, and he learned to fly it. During his time in high school, she said, the principal would frequently motion him out of class and other students would think he was in trouble. But what it usually involved was somebody getting in touch with Cook over one of his business ventures.
His father became ill in the 1940s and Jack Cook liquidated his other ventures and concentrated on the laundry and cleaning enterprise his parents had bought. It dates back almost a century, starting as Radford Steam Laundry and known as New Radford Laundry until the 1960s when the name was changed to Cook's Clean Center and Cook's Service Cleaners.
"He was hard to work for," said Cherokee Cook, who started doing clerical work for him in 1949. Soon, a relationship developed but, she said, "he wouldn't let me tell any of the employees that we were dating."
After they were married, they started a professional laundry in Galax and put together a dry cleaning plant. They later sold those enterprises and returned to Radford where they started the New River Valley's first coin-operated laundry businesses. Eventually they bought out seven coin laundries or dry cleaning plants.
"He loved to move on, he loved to build, he loved to progress," Cherokee Cook said.
Jack Cook had a visual handicap that hampered his reading, she said. "He learned from looking and watching." When their daughters began taking riding lessons, she said, he decided to learn, too, and ended up keeping horses.
The Cooks built a new restaurant for their business neighbor when an electrical fire had destroyed it in 1984. They were founding members of the Radford University Athletic Association, and contributors to the university's foundation.
"It was the greatest gift to be married to him," Cherokee Cook said. "If you cooked a good meal, he complimented you. If you dressed up and looked good, he complimented you. If you wore a shade of lipstick he didn't like, he told you so and suggested another color."
The couple have five children and 13 grandchildren. A service for Cook will be held at 7 tonight at First Christian Church in Radford. Horne Funeral Service in Christiansburg is handling arrangements.
Paul Dellinger can be reached at (276) 228-4752 or [email protected].
