Richard Cook
Oakland, Calif. — Richard Foster Cook died peacefully in Oakland on Thursday, July 26, 2018, five weeks shy of his 96th birthday. It was a life well lived. Dick was born in Newark, N.J., on Sept. 1, 1922, proudly claiming descent from eight Mayflower travelers. His family settled in Providence, R.I., where he spent many summers at a Cape Cod camp leading to his love of “all things water.” He also loved music and playing piano and drums.
Dick entered Cornell University as a mechanical engineering major, crewed as sixth stroke with the freshman team that won the Poughkeepsie Regatta, and joined Seal and Serpent Fraternity. After entering the Army he was assigned to The University of Minnesota for specialized secret training. There he met and married Betty Blanche Heneman in 1943. The young couple moved to Oak Ridge, Tenn., where he served his country as part of the Y12 program for The Manhattan Project.
At war’s end, he was discharged and returned with his wife and first child, Susan, to finish his studies at Cornell. Upon graduation, the family settled in Providence where Richard Jr. was born. Dick had a long and successful career in the textile industry, participating in many advances in textile engineering. The family lived in Providence, Short Hills, N.J. and Stonington. Dick was an accomplished sailor, golfer and bridge player. At 90, he undertook his last adventure and moved to Oakland, Calif.
Betty died in 1992. He later married Joan Clark Moffett who also predeceased him. He was also predeceased by his sister, Kathryn Bartlett Bowen; his brother, Robert Bartlett Cook; and his daughter-in-law, Stephenie Smith Cook.
He is survived by his children, Susan Cook Hoganson (John) and Richard F. Cook Jr.; his grandchildren, Richard Warren Cook (Gretchen) and Sarah Cook Leggett (Thomas); great-grandchildren, Ryder and Lucille; and many loving nieces and nephews.
A memorial service was held on Aug. 25. Burial will be in the family plot in Sleepy Hollow Cemetery, Concord, Mass. on July 1, 2019.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Cook Hoganson Family Endowment for Special Collections, Graduate Theological Union, 24 Ridge Road, Berkeley, CA 94709.