Obituary of Larry Don Cook, Sr.

Larry Don Cook, Sr. passed away at home in Columbia, SC on June 12, 2017, at the age of 77.  Larry was predeceased by his parents, Marion and Beth Cook; his brother Jerry; his sister Sylvia; and his daughter, Jenny. 

Larry is lovingly remembered by his wife, Jane (Pendleton). They were married in Wytheville, VA, on August 31, 1968.  Larry is also survived by his children Sylvia Forman (Sean) of Philadelphia, PA, Larry Cook Jr. (Amber) of Columbia, SC, and Nathaniel Cook of Louisville, KY; his brother Lee (Sherrye) of Denver, CO, his sister Lyla of Cleveland, OH, and many nieces and nephews, as well as three grandchildren: Carl and Elinore Forman, and Gibbs Cook.  

Larry was born in Cambridge, KS, on April 13th, 1940. He graduated from Cambridge High School in 1958 and went on to earn a BA in Music from Hastings College (Nebraska) in 1962, and a Ph.D. in Choral Literature and Conducting from The University of Iowa in 1976. 

After graduating from Hastings College, he received a Rotary Grant for study in Germany where he studied organ with Helmut Walcha and harpsichord with Maria Jäger. Larry taught choral music and conducting at Baldwin-Wallace College, the University of Alberta in Edmonton, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Northwestern University, and DePaul.

Throughout his career, Larry enjoyed working with civic and community choral organizations: at Baldwin-Wallace College he conducted the famed Bach Festival Choir; in Edmonton, the Richard Eaton Singers; in Chapel Hill, the Durham Civic Choral Society; and the Southeastern Oratorio Society in Whiteville, NC.  He also enjoyed performing with the Tallis Chamber Orchestra in Wilmington, NC. While in the U.S. Army, Larry was organist and choirmaster at the Post Chapel, USMA, West Point, New York.  Larry served as organist and choirmaster at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Wilmington, NC for fifteen years prior to his retirement in 2013.

The visitation will be held at Grubb Funeral Home, 215 S 6th St., Wytheville, VA, from 10-12 on Saturday June 17.

The funeral service will be held at St. John’s Episcopal Church, 275 E Main St., on Saturday June 17th at 3:00 pm, followed by the burial at the West End Cemetery, 300 Sherwood Forest Road.  A reception will take place after the burial at St. John’s Church.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be directed to the Warren and Maggie Scharf Endowed Scholarship Fund at Hastings College, or to the Melanoma Research Foundation.  

Memorial gifts to the Scholarship Fund at Hastings College can be made through the Hastings College website at www.hastings.edu or mailed to The Hastings College Foundation, 710 North Turner Avenue, Hastings, NE  68901.

Memorial gifts to the Melanoma Research Foundation can be made through their website,www.melanoma.org, or mailed to Melanoma Research Foundation, 1411 K Street, NW, Suite 800, Washington, DC 20005.

Grubb Funeral Home is in charge of the arrangements.