Mary Elizabeth Cook

Mary Elizabeth Cummins Cook, a Celebration of Life

A life-long resident of Florida, recent transplant to Clarksville, TN, and wonderful woman–Mrs. Merle Cook, Mary, Mom, Gramma, Great Gramma, Boopie"was freed from Alzheimer's peacefully on the 18th of March 2017, surrounded by loved ones. She is preceded in death by her husband, parents, and brother; and is survived by her beloved and devoted son, Ted Welton, whom she lovingly raised on her own; daughter-in-love, Jayce, her mani-pedi partner; cherished granddaughters, Heather, Katie, and Taylor, to whom she gave her beauty, love of reading, and independent spirit; grandsons-in-law, Thomas and Michael, who showed her love and respect; and four (really) great-grandchildren, Gavin, Abigail, Seth, and Hanley. Over the years she was much to many: loving daughter, cheerleader, secretary, friend, wife, soldier's mother, law enforcement widow, grandmother, great-grandmother, and animal advocate extraordinaire: and she did them all with grace. She had a tremendous heart, and was always - always - willing to help. She may well have donated more over the years to needy children, law enforcement, and animal rescues than many people spend on a house. She was especially a great lover of cats; it would come as no surprise to those that knew her if her cats had happily given up eight lives just to live one with her. Even though it's relatively scarce in Florida, she loved the autumn foliage so prevalent further north. She once made a road trip to Maryland in October to see the beautiful autumn colors - a trip well documented by photo after photo of brilliant trees. Always a dancer at heart, after years of using the refrigerator door as a partner, she entered ballroom competitions, and amassed a sufficient number of trophies to fence a small garden, including one for First Place at Madison Square Garden. There was rarely a crossword puzzle or episode of Wheel of Fortune that could best her; she enjoyed bowling and playing cards; and she was wicked lucky at Yahtzee, to her granddaughters' dismay. A football fan, she filled a spiral notebook with stats of every NFL game played for decades - having usually correctly called the winner, frustrating her brother-in-law to no end. While she loved to travel, and had visited a dozen countries, home was her favorite place. For her son and his gypsy' military family, it was a comfortable and consistent haven; nothing changed there. In her last few years, her traveling consisted of excursions on her golf cart (more recently to the drive-thru for ice cream), preferably chauffeured by great-grandson Gavin, aka "Sweetheart", with whom she conspired to hit the road' right to the very end. Others dear to her include truly life-long friend, Ginger (FL); more-than-a-sister-in-law, Darlene (SC); nieces Susan and Jane (MI); "that nice woman who comes to see me", Angelynn (TN); and a truly wonderful group of ladies at the Ajax Turner Senior Center (Clarksville)– Freda, Mary, Lillian, Jessica, Brittany, and Annetta"with whom she loved to visit, and who showed her more caring and love than you would ever have expected. As a teen, her dream was to travel, have a family and a career, and to find that "one true love" – and she did it all. Now, she's Dancing with The Star for eternity, as clear and strong and independent as she ever was, having traded trophies for a crown. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to the Alzheimer's Association, or contributions to Mary's Wood, a planting of deciduous trees that will perform' for her every autumn for years to come. Links for both can be found in the Service Information section below.