Joseph (Joe) Earl Cook, born January 2, 1938, in
Stockton, Alabama, was the oldest of three sons of the late L J Cook and Lydia Edwards Cook.
Joseph was preceded in death by his parents and brother Raymond Cook. Joseph is survived by his wife Queen (Williams) of nearly 60 years; his daughters Xanthe Cook and Yvette Cook, his son Bryan Cook, his daughter-in-law Andrea Cook, as well as his granddaughter Campbell Cook. He is also survived by his brother Robert Cook.
At an early age, Joseph's parents moved to the Vaughn Settlement in north Stockton where he attended elementary and junior high school at Vaughn Junior High School. At approximately age 12, he accepted Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior at Greater St. John Baptist Church in
Stockton, Alabama. He attended worship services regularly, was a member of the Sunday class, and sang in the youth choir.
In 1953, Joseph continued his formal education at Douglasville High School in
Bay Minette, Alabama where he excelled as a student, played the drums in the marching band, and made a host of friends. After he completed high school in 1956, Joseph traveled to
Chicago, Illinois to try to earn a living. He worked various jobs during the day and attended Dunbar Vocational High School at night studying to be an electrician. However, in August of 1958, a major milestone and turning point occurred in his life. Joseph returned to Alabama and enrolled in the Electrical Engineering Program at Tuskegee University (formerly Institute) in
Tuskegee, Alabama. At the same time, he enrolled in the Reserve Officers Training Corp (ROTC) Program at the university. In May 1963, Joseph graduated from Tuskegee University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering and was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in the United States Army Air Defense Artillery Branch of Service. While attending Tuskegee University, Joseph met his wife-to-be, Queen Williams Cook. After they both graduated in May 1963, they married in October of that same year in
Tuskegee, Alabama.
In August 1963, Lieutenant Cook began his active duty Officer Basic Training (OBT) in Ft Bliss, Texas on various Missile Systems. In early November 1963, Lt. Cook was assigned to the 6th Missile Battalion, 38th Artillery Brigade, in the Republic of South Korea which included a special assignment in Taichung, Taiwan via Tokyo, Japan, and Okinawa, Japan. After completing a 13-month tour of duty in South Korea, Lt. Cook returned to the United States and was assigned to the 45th Artillery Brigade, Mid-West North American Air Defense Command in
Arlington Heights, Illinois. Lt. Cook was promoted to 1st Lieutenant and spent the remainder of his military career in this assignment. In February 1966, Lt. Cook decided to end his military career and join the corporate world. He received an honorable discharge and immediately joined the Western Electric Company (a subsidiary of AT&T) in
Chicago, Illinois as a Standards Engineer. He was promoted to several levels of management there before being promoted to Assistant Manager and transferred to
Greensboro, NC in January 1978.
Joseph worked in several management positions at the Guilford Center in McLeansville before retiring with 30+ years of service from AT&T/Lucent Technologies in March 1996 as a Technical Manager.
After retiring from Lucent Technologies, Inc., Joseph founded Cook Realty, Inc., where he was the President/CEO and Broker in Charge. He successfully operated the company out of his home until January 2011 when he decided to fully retire.
Upon moving from Illinois to
Greensboro, North Carolina, Joseph became a member of Shiloh Baptist Church with his family in 1978. He was ordained as a deacon and became Chairperson of the Deacon Ministry in 1982. During his time at Shiloh Baptist Church, he sang in the Male Chorus, served as secretary of the Deacon Ministry, was a teacher in the Adult Summer Enrichment Program, served as Vice Chair of the Sunday School Ministry and as an adult Sunday school teacher, as well as served with the Laymen's League and was the treasurer for a period.
Joseph was a volunteer at the Greensboro Urban Ministry on a regular basis and also led the devotional period prior to serving at times. He enjoyed traveling, fishing, cooking, sports, reading, writing, gardening, and music. In lieu of flowers, the family prefers donations be made in Joseph Cook's memory to Greensboro Urban Ministry, online at https://www.greensborourbanministry.org/donate or by mail at 305 West Gate City Boulevard,
Greensboro, NC 27406.
A service honoring his life will be held Saturday, April 8, 2023 at Shiloh Baptist Church; 1210 S Eugene Street,
Greensboro, NC 27406. The visitation will begin at 11:30am and the service will follow at 12pm.
The burial will follow the service at Lakeview Memorial Park; 3600 N. O'Henry Blvd.
Greensboro, NC 27405. Send flowers to the service of Joseph Earl Cook