Pearl Cook
Pearl Rebecca Cook, 90, of Marion died Jan. 27, 2003, at Hillsboro Community Long Term Care Unit.
Born Oct. 14, 1912, at Lyndon, she was the youngest child born to Perry R. and Bertha (Nestor) Rockey.
When she was five years old, the family moved to Topeka, where she attended Quincy School and graduated from the eighth grade.
On June 18, 1932, she married Eugene Cook. The family moved to California in 1938 and lived there for two years. During that time, she worked in a greenhouse planting orchids.
In 1940, they moved to Marion and leased the Greenemeyer Bakery.
In 1942, the family moved to Newton.
In 1949, the family moved to Bloomington, Ill., where her husband worked in Grassfield Bakery and she worked part-time at Kress Dime Store.
In 1952, they moved to Newton and bought a bakery, which they named Cookies Bake Shop. Pearl served as the bookkeeper, manager, and sales clerk until 1970. The building was torn down, so the couple retired and moved to Texas.
In 1976, the couple joined into business with C.E. Cook, her husband's brother. They built a bakery and worked there until her husband's death in 1978.
She enjoyed traveling and made a trip to the Holy Land in 1985.
In 1987, she moved to Marion and lived at the September Apartments for 14 years. She enjoyed playing cards and working on jigsaw and crossword puzzles.
She was a member of the Christian Church and a lifetime member of Eastern Star in Newton.
Survivors include son, James Cook and wife Sheila of Chilicothe, Mo.; daughters, Barbara and husband Lewis Graham of Marion, Beverly and husband Gary Helmer of Hillsboro, Mary and husband Bert Gilchrist of Petaluma, Calif., and Carol Sue and husband John Hargis of Napa, Calif.; 13 grandchildren, seven step grandchildren; 16 great-grandchildren; and five great-great-grandchildren.
Services will be held Saturday at 1:30 p.m. at Zeiner Funeral Home in Marion with Rev. Dick Pracht officiating. A committal service will be at 4 p.m. Saturday at Restlawn Gardens of Memory Cemetery in Newton.
A memorial fund has been established with the Marion Christian Church.
