Obituary of Homer Cook Jr. HOMER COOK JR. Virginian-Pilot, The (Norfolk, VA) - Thursday, May 13, 1999 Homer Cook Jr., 57, of Rochelle St., died Tuesday, May 11, 1999, after a long, difficult illness in Sentara Norfolk General Hospital. A lifelong resident of Southampton County, he was born on Nov. 29, 1941, the son of Homer Cook Sr. and Mary Saunders Cook who survive him and live in Ivor. He retired after 34 years of service as crew leader for the Virginia Department of Highways and Transportation, Berlin office. He was a past member of Tucker Swamp Baptist Church and currently was a member of Ivor Baptist Church. Homer loved bluegrass and country music and was a talented guitar player. He was a past member of the band ``Harold Britt and the Virginia Playboys,'' was president of the Country Cut-Up Band and was an honorary member of the Western Union Band. An avid outdoorsman, he loved hunting and fishing and was a member of the Bent Barrel Hunt Club. He was also a member of the Suffolk Moose Lodge No. 141, past member of the Ivor Volunteer Rescue Squad and Fire Department. He had attended Virginia Department of Corrections training at the Waynesboro Academy for Staff Development and was proud to have completed adult and general education classes at Southampton High School. He and his wife Dianne were married on Oct. 6, 1969, and had served as foster parents to many children for the past 10 years. Besides his parents, he is also survived by his wife of 29 1/2 years, Dianne Whitley Cook of Courtland; a stepdaughter, Darlene Harris of Petersburg; a son, Johnnie Wise of Waverly; two sisters, Jean C. Bradshaw of Holland and Grace ``Shep'' Rodgester of Franklin; three brothers, Clyde ``Pete'' Cook, Samuel ``Nick'' Cook and Edward ``Bubba'' Cook, all of Ivor; four grandchildren, Milton Emmett Wise, 11, John Michael Wise, 9, Jessica Dianne Wise, 19 months, and baby Wise, due in October; and a special daughter, Velvet U. Georgitsis; and special children, Randy Harris and his wife, Crystal. He will also be missed by a host of nieces, nephews, cousins, friends and neighbors. A funeral will be held at 11 a.m. Saturday at Purviance Funeral Home, Wakefield, by the Rev. Linwood Peterson and the Rev. Steve Bradshaw. Burial will be in Riverside Cemetery, Courtland. The family will receive friends from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Friday at the funeral home and at other times at the residence of Homer and Mary Cook, Church Street, Ivor. The family asks that memorial donations be sent to the family to assist with the many medical bills incurred during Homer's illness. Send these memorials addressed to Dianne W. Cook c/o Darlene Harris, 8000 Campfire Lane, Petersburg, Va. 23803. Edition: FINAL Section: LOCAL Page: B9 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ––– Narrative Summary of the Obituary ––– Homer Cook Jr., 57, of Rochelle Street, Ivor, died 11 May 1999 after a long illness. A lifelong resident of Southampton County, he retired as a crew leader with the Virginia Department of Highways and Transportation. A funeral was held 15 May 1999 at Purviance Funeral Home, Wakefield, officiated by Rev. Linwood Peterson and Rev. Steve Bradshaw. Burial was in Riverside Cemetery, Courtland. ––– Transcript ––– HOMER COOK JR. Homer Cook Jr., 57, of Rochelle St., died Tuesday, May 11, 1999, after a long, difficult illness in Sentara Norfolk General Hospital. A lifelong resident of Southampton County, he was born on Nov. 29, 1941, the son of Homer Cook Sr. and Mary Saunders Cook who survive him and live in Ivor. He retired after 34 years of service as crew leader for the Virginia Department of Highways and Transportation, Berlin office. He was a past member of Tucker Swamp Baptist Church and currently was a member of Ivor Baptist Church. Homer loved bluegrass and country music and was a talented guitar player. He was a past member of the band "Harold Britt and the Virginia Playboys," was president of the Country Cut-Up Band and was an honorary member of the Western Union Band. An avid outdoorsman, he loved hunting and fishing and was a member of the Bent Barrel Hunt Club. He was also a member of the Suffolk Moose Lodge No. 141, past member of the Ivor Volunteer Rescue Squad and Fire Department. He had attended Virginia Department of Corrections training at the Waynesboro Academy for Staff Development and was proud to have completed adult and general education classes at Southampton High School. He and his wife Dianne were married on Oct. 6, 1969, and had served as foster parents to many children for the past 10 years. Besides his parents, he is also survived by his wife of 29 1/2 years, Dianne Whitley Cook of Courtland; a stepdaughter, Darlene Harris of Petersburg; a son, Johnnie Wise of Waverly; two sisters, Jean C. Bradshaw of Holland and Grace "Shep" Rodgester of Franklin; three brothers, Clyde "Pete" Cook, Samuel "Nick" Cook and Edward "Bubba" Cook, all of Ivor; four grandchildren, Milton Emmett Wise, 11, John Michael Wise, 9, Jessica Dianne Wise, 19 months, and baby Wise, due in October; and a special daughter, Velvet U. Georgitsis; and special children, Randy Harris and his wife, Crystal. He will also be missed by a host of nieces, nephews, cousins, friends and neighbors. A funeral was held at 11 a.m. Saturday [15 May 1999] at Purviance Funeral Home, Wakefield, by Rev. Linwood Peterson and Rev. Steve Bradshaw. Burial was in Riverside Cemetery, Courtland. The family received friends from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Friday [14 May 1999] at the funeral home and at other times at the residence of Homer and Mary Cook, Church Street, Ivor. The family asked that memorial donations be sent to the family to assist with the medical bills incurred during Homer's illness, addressed to Dianne W. Cook c/o Darlene Harris, 8000 Campfire Lane, Petersburg, Va. 23803. ––– Vital Statistics ––– |--------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Field | Value | | Name | Homer Cook Jr. | | Age | 57 years | | Birth | 29 November 1941; Ivor, Virginia | | Death | 11 May 1999; Sentara Norfolk General Hospital, Norfolk, Virginia | |--------------------------------------------------------------------------| ––– Table of Relationships ––– |-------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Name | Relationship | Residence | | Homer Cook Jr. | Decedent | Ivor, Virginia | | Dianne Whitley Cook | Wife | Courtland, Virginia | | Homer Cook Sr. | Father | Ivor, Virginia | | Mary Saunders Cook | Mother | Ivor, Virginia | | Darlene Harris | Stepdaughter | Petersburg, Virginia | | Johnnie Wise | Son | Waverly, Virginia | | Jean C. Bradshaw | Sister | Holland, Virginia | | Grace "Shep" Rodgester | Sister | Franklin, Virginia | | Clyde "Pete" Cook | Brother | Ivor, Virginia | | Samuel "Nick" Cook | Brother | Ivor, Virginia | | Edward "Bubba" Cook | Brother | Ivor, Virginia | | Milton Emmett Wise | Grandson | [Unknown] | | John Michael Wise | Grandson | [Unknown] | | Jessica Dianne Wise | Granddaughter | [Unknown] | | Baby Wise | Grandchild (unborn) | [Unknown] | | Velvet U. Georgitsis | Special daughter | [Unknown] | | Randy Harris | Special child | [Unknown] | | Crystal Harris | Spouse of special child | [Unknown] | |-------------------------------------------------------------------------| ––– Publication Details ––– |--------------------------------| | Field | Value | | Location | Norfolk, Virginia | | Name | The Virginian-Pilot | | Date | 13 May 1999 | | Edition | FINAL | | Section | LOCAL | | Page | B9 | |--------------------------------| ––– Other Relevant Information ––– • Retired after 34 years with the Virginia Department of Highways and Transportation, Berlin office. • Past member of Tucker Swamp Baptist Church. • Member of Ivor Baptist Church. • Played guitar; member of multiple country and bluegrass bands. • President of Country Cut-Up Band, honorary member of Western Union Band. • Member of Suffolk Moose Lodge No. 141. • Past member of Ivor Volunteer Rescue Squad and Fire Department. • Member of Bent Barrel Hunt Club. • Completed adult and general education classes at Southampton High School. • Completed training at Waynesboro Academy for Staff Development. • Spouse’s birth name was Dianne Whitley. [Contributed by Bruce Saunders, bs4403@verizon.net] --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools may have contributed to the creation of this text. Please verify critical information, as AI-generated content can include errors.] [This file is https://go-stp.com/BruceObituaries/ShowText.html?Cook, Homer Jr.txt]