John Cole

I read David Van Rooy´s "memory message" and was moved by how well he must´ve known my dear brother, John. It warms my heart to know how many others also witnessed his work ethic and love for the people he served. John was always honest, thoughtful, respectful, and compassionate. He worked with "the least of these" and humbly lived the core values and mission of social work. John lived God´s words in Matthew 25:34-36, 40: "Then the King will say to those on his right, `Come, you who are...

I worked at Kent County Department of Human Services for 21 years and during part of that time I had the immense privilege of working directly for Mr. Cole. I always had a hard time calling him John. To me, he was Mr. Cole. He was a wonderful leader and was always thinking ahead to innovation in services to children and their families. He worked diligently and collaboratively with our community's private agencies and was a leading force in making services to children in Kent County a well...

I worked in human services in Kent County for 35 years, and during much of that time I had the good fortune to watch and learn from John. He was a gentle and charming man with a warm sense of humor - his laugh was contagious and he had the best chuckle ever. These gifts sometimes belied how smart, honest and relentlessly hard-working he was. John had a practical, problem-solving turn of mind; his nature was to dispassionately uncover problems and then creatively and effectively fix them....

We treasure the memories of our visits with John. Balloons, donuts, dogs, kids, Elvis, but most importantly "the blue ball"! John´s smiles and laughter during a catch and pass game was priceless! We will miss him and love him dearly. Bill and Marcia Cole

So many wonderful memories of "Unque" and so grateful and blessed that our girls were able to have so many fun times with him on "Ticket Tuesdays." He is already greatly missed, and we cherish the memories. Love, Jared, Ashley, Breslyn & Brynlee Cole