COMMUNITY
MARCH 15, 2019
WWW.THEPRESS.NET
Honoring Dale Cook’s well-lived life by Tony Kukulich Staff Writer
Dale Cook appeared to have somehow squeezed several lifetimes into his 92 years before he passed away on Feb. 28, but to those who knew him best, perhaps his most astounding quality was his ability to push others to find the best in themselves. “He always pushed me to be the best person,” said Stacey Simon, one of Cook’s granddaughters. “He led by example, I think is the root of it. He lived this incredible life and I aspire to be 50 percent of that. The special thing about him was him leading by example and having these incredible accomplishments.” In an article for The Valley Citizen that Cook authored in May 2000, he wrote that he was born and raised in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho and enlisted in the Marines with 17 of his classmates in March 1944, before he graduated high school. He finished Basic Training that summer and became part of a team manning an 81-mm mortar. Assigned to the Second Battalion, 23rd Marines under the Fourth Marine Division, he was in the Pacific by Thanksgiving of that year. On Feb. 19, 1945, Cook was part of the force of 70,000 that invaded Iwo Jima, a barren island of volcanic ash measuring only 8 square miles. It was the start of one of the costliest battles in the history of the Marine Corps, eventually resulting in 26,000 killed or wounded servicemen. In Cook’s article, he explained that he made it through 16 days of combat before wounds received from a Japanese hand grenade ended his part in the battle. After the war, Cook attended Washington State University and started a career in the newspaper business. He worked for the Atomic Energy Commission as public information officer, and held a similar role with the Army Reserve. Over the years he became very in-
COOK volved in veterans groups, including the Marine Corps League Delta Diablo Detachment 1155, in Brentwood. “The guy was just service before self,” said Steve Todd, commander of Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) Post 10789, in Brentwood. “He just gave back everything — always involved in something. He was just a good guy. He always helped out with everybody. You see him coming to talk to you and he’d say, ‘Hey, let me talk to you for a minute.’ You knew that minute was going to be about 20 minutes. What a great guy.” Todd added that Cook’s involvement with veterans may have been part of the reason he was still active as he approached his 93rd birthday.
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“This was Dale’s therapy that kept him going — working with veterans, working with correspondents groups, talking with people,” said Todd. “For us veterans, this is good therapy. We’re with like-minded people and it works for us.” In addition to his work with veterans, Cook was active as a scoutmaster in the Boy Scouts. Chris Friedmann, now a police officer with the Brentwood Police Department, was part of his troop in Pleasant Hill for several years, and said that Cook helped more than 50 boys attain the prestigious rank of Eagle Scout. Cook motivated Friedmann’s decision to join the Marines and often sent letters encouraging him during Friedmann’s time in boot camp and during his overseas deployment in the first Gulf War. Friedmann still has those letters, and he remained close to Cook over the years, so much so that he was asked to serve as a pallbearer at his funeral Tuesday. “The guy was an amazing person,” said Friedmann. “He made people around him better people. (His) was a life well-lived … He made an incredible impact on my life, that’s for sure — and on the lives of many young men.” A celebration of Cook’s life was held after his funeral Tuesday afternoon. A large crowd of friends and family filled the recreation center at Summerset I, reminiscing, sharing stories and talking about the influence he had in their lives. “Dale’s had a great life, a busy life, an active life,” said Todd. “Between the VFW and the Marine Corps League, (he stayed) very active working with everybody, helping everybody out. He was corporal in the Marines and he was a major in the Army Reserve. You don’t hear much about his Army stuff. He was always talking about his Marine stuff. He was most proud of being a Marine. He’s going to be missed.” To comment, visit www.thepress.net
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