Ruth Elizabeth Proctor Cook (1918-1999) Autobiography Part 15

Wow! I can't believe that it is Friday again and that I am actually home. In today's episode of Mother's life, she tells about her back injury and how she was paralyzed for several months and in the hospital. When she mentions Darrell taking her through the locker room at the Rigby Boy's basketball games, she should have said Rigby instead of Menan. The Rigby Trojans played their games in Rigby and not in Menan. Enjoy! Let me know what you think!!!

Ruth Elizabeth Proctor Cook (1918-1999) Autobiography Part 14

I am finally home long enough to get another segment of Mother's Life Story ready.  She finishes telling about the trip her, Dad, and Darrell took and then about Dad's death. She mentions that when she died she had a silver dollar and some other coins for us kids.  I have mine and will add pictures of my coins and the little leather holder that she kept them in.  Man, I miss her and Dad.

Ruth Elizabeth Proctor Cook (1918-1999) Autobiography Part 13

Here is the next installment of Mother's Life Story.  Here she shares another adventure with Aunt Atha and Uncle Opal, there were many you know.  She always tells of a trip that she took with Daddy and Darrell.  More of it will be coming next week.  Enjoy!!

Ruth Elizabeth Proctor Cook (1918-1999) Autobiography-Part 12

Are you ready for the next exciting episode of Mother's life story.  In this episode she tells of our adventures in Lovell, Wyoming and of our move back to Menan, Idaho.  She tells of the Menan First Ward's girls' baseball team that she coached.  She loved those girls and they loved her.  

Mom Share Your Life with Me - November 16

Question:  Tell the full names, birthdays, and birthplaces of all of your children.

Answer:  Vergil Franklin Cook, 31 August 1939, Rigby, Idaho
                Theron Earl Cook, 24 May 1941, Rigby, Idaho
                Joyce Cook, 6 November 1943, Rigby, Idaho
                Lois Cook, 11 March 1947, Rigby, Idaho
                George Kay Cook, 27 April 1953, Lovelle, Wyoming
                Darrell James Cook, 22 October 1954, Rigby, Idaho

By the way, today is Mother's birthday.  She would have been 96 today.  Happy Birthday, Mother.  Hope you have a beautiful day!!!  We love you and miss you so very much.

Back row: Theron, Lois, Cleo (Dad), Ruth (Mother)

Front row:  Kay, Frank, Darrell, Joyce

Mom Share Your Life with Me - August 27

Question:  Did you ever have a fire in your home or accidentally catch something on fire?

Answer:  Kay and Darrell were playing with matched and set a fire in our garbage basket and it scorched the side of my washer which was by it, before we got it put out.  We were very lucky.

Life Story of Cleo Earl Cook-Part 4

LIFE HISTORY OF CLEO EARL COOK

Written by Ruth Elizabeth Proctor Cook

Mom and Dad (Cleo and Ruth Cook)

Cleo couldn't work for awhile and when he could he couldn't go back to work for Westergards so he worked for Ray Pettingill in Idaho Falls.  Mirl Pettingill also worked there and he helped Cleo.  Ray decided there wasn't enough work to keep all the men, so Cleo was laid off.  He worked a short time at the Menan Produce.  Then Verda Munns called and asked him if would like to work at the Idaho Fresh Pak.  He started to work there in March 1966.

Kay, Dad and Darrell

Theron and Cynthia Viera were married in Chula Vista, California, 28 May 1966.  Cleo couldn't go to their wedding but he let Ruth, Kay, and Darrell go. 

Theron and Cindy Cook

The same year on 21 October, his daughter Joyce was married to Max L. Wilson in the Idaho Falls LDS Temple.  He was able to attend that wedding. 

Front Row:  Mother, Joyce, and Dad

Back Row: Kay, Lois, Theron, Frank, and Darrell

Myrna Ball, Janae Cook, Cindy Cook, Lois Berrett, Joyce and Max, Best Man, Leah Wilson, Cleo and Ruth Cook

Front Row:  Mother, Joyce and Max, Dad holding Craig,

Back Row:  Kay, Theron and Cindy, Mark and Lois, Frank and Ilene, and Darrell

After a few years went by, on 25 August 1972, George Kay as married to Carla Jean Holyoak in the Salt Lake LDS Temple.

Kay and Carla, with Dad and Mom

Dad and Mom

  Everyone was able to be there.  Darrell James and Becky Sue Walker, Cleo's last son, as married 14 June 1974 in Rigby.  Cleo wasn't able to be there in person, but he surely was in spirit.

Darrell and Becky 

Theron, Kay, Darrell, Mom, Joyce and Lois

Cleo enjoyed hunting and fishing. 

Dad opening up his new fishing chair

Dad with some of his fishing buddies

He enjoyed his boat and camper.  He liked to go on camping trips into many different states.  He liked to take his sons out hunting with him.  He taught them how to use their gun and have respect for them.  He enjoyed taking his grandchildren with him in his pick-up or for boat rides or anywhere with him.  Cleo loved his grandchildren.  He had 14 grandchildren-eight grandsons and six granddaughters.  They all loved him too.

Mom and Dad with grandkids

Front Row:  David Cook, Shannon and Brian Berrett

Back Row:  Craig Cook, Lynette Wilson,  Mother holding Cari Cook, Dad holding Ryan Wilson and Shellie Cook.

Dad and Darrell

Cleo was asked to be athletic director of the Menan First Ward.  He really loved this job and held this church position until he was called to his heavenly home.

The morning of 30 December 1972, Cleo and Dee Raymond were getting hay in Cleo's pick-up at Bill Raymond's farm.  Dee said the hay was loaded and they were on their way home and were laughing and talking when Cleo put his head back and took a quick breath.  Dee grabbed the steering wheel and stopped the pick-up and went for help.  He got Terry Fullmer and they drove to the Idaho Falls hospital.  Theron was working there when they brought his Dad in.  Theron said he just knew they didn't get there in time for his Dad had been called to his heavenly home.

Cleo's services were held in the Menan First Ward Chapel, 2 January 1973, at 1:30 p.m.  Bishop Lyle Cottle conducted the services.  He was buried in the Grant Central Cemetery.  The day of Cleo's services was very cold.  Ruth was told it was a large service for the weather being so cold and there were a lot of beautiful flowers.

Cleo was loved by all who knew him.  He was always dependable and always cheerful.  He never complained.  Ruth never heard Cleo say anything unkind about anyone.  He had a way of making everyone around him feel very special.  All of Cleo and Ruth's sons and daughters have been married in the temple and it makes them both very happy.

Front Row:  Kay, Frank, Darrell and Joyce

Back Row:  Theron, Lois, Dad, and Mom

Cleo's sisters gave me, Ruth, help in writing Cleo's personal history and I want to thank them very much.

Here are some pictures of Dad that I thought you might enjoy. The first few were taken on Dad and Mom's 25 Anniversary.

Dad and his boys Kay, Darrell, Frank and Theron

Kay, Dad, and Darrell

Darrell, Kay and Lois

Joyce, Dad and Mom

Life Story of Cleo Earl Cook-Part 3

LIFE HISTORY OF CLEO EARL COOK

Written by Ruth Elizabeth Proctor Cook

Dad and Mom (Cleo and Ruth)

Cleo and his family moved from Roberts to Rigby 8 December 1947.  They moved onto a farm owned by Orrin Jeppson with the option to buy.  But every time Cleo would mention it to Orrin, he would say let's try it another year or else I haven't made up my mind yet.  Cleo farmed this farm until 1952 when he decided to quit farming. 

Mother, Frank, Theron, Joyce and Lois at the home in Rigby

At the home in Rigby, Theron, Frank, Lois and Joyce

Joyce and Dad

Lois and Dad

Frank and Dad

So he had a farm sell and sold everything and bought a home in Menan.  Ruth and the family lived there while Cleo worked on the high power line for C.L. Lewis in Lovell, Wyoming.  Cleo finally found a basement home in Lovell and came back to Menan to move his family to Lovell.  In Lovell, another son came to join their family tree.  He was born 27 April 1953 and was named George Kay Cook.

George Kay Cook in Lovelle, Wyoming

In August 1953, they moved back to Menan, Idaho, as the government decided they didn't have enough money to finish the power lines.  They lived with Dad and Mother Cook in Grant for awhile as there were other people living in their home in Menan.

Kay and Dad at home in Menan

Kay and Dad at home in Menan

Cleo started to work for Westergard Transfer and Storage in Idaho Falls in the fall of 1953,  Cleo worked in the Mutual as a Jr. M-Men Leader, also as a counselor to Cliff Sommers.  When Cliff moved, Elbert Dalley was put into this position and Cleo worked as his counselor.  Cleo worked with the Scouts, was on the Elder's entertainment committee and was head of the letters which were written to the missionaries and servicemen from the ward.  Cleo was released from the Mutual as he was working for Westergards and would take a truck out of town. He felt like he was missing too many of his meetings.  He was released in 1963.

Dad (Cleo Earl Cook)

Another son joined their family tree on 22 October 1954.  He was born in Rigby and was named Darrell James Cook.

Darrell James Cook

Cleo also worked in the Sunday School as a counselor to Joe Jensen and Alvin Poole.  He enjoyed this church position and did the work to the best of his ability.

Dad watching a movie in Menan

Cleo took a car load of boys to the all church softball tournament in Salt Lake City, Utah, 22 August 1960.  He really enjoyed this.  He coached a junior softball team and his sons Kay and Darrell played on the team.  He was asked to coach the senior team in June 1963.  Cleo enjoyed sports and he never missed very many games.  He enjoyed watching his sons, daughters, sons-in-law and daughters-in-law play any kind or sports.  Cleo and Ruth went to every basketball game that Darrell played in when he was playing for Rigby High School, the games that were played at home and also those that were played away from Rigby.  He would often quit work early so he could get home and get ready to go.  John Swager, Cleo's boss at the Fresh Pak, told Ruth that Cleo was very proud of his family.

Cleo and family attended a wedding for Vergil Franklin Cook and Florence Ilene Richards in the Salt Lake Temple in September 1963.

Ilene and Frank Cook

In 1965, Cleo received a back injury while working for Westergards and he had surgery in April.  Dr. Boge and Dr. Higgs operated on him.  It was touch and go for awhile.  We saw what the power of the priesthood could do for someone you love and the Lord had more work for Cleo to do at this time.  He hadn't been home from the hospital very long, when he attended the wedding of his daughter Lois to Franklin Mark Berrett.  They were married 4 June 1965 in the Idaho Falls LDS Temple.

Mark and Lois Berrett

Life Story of Ruth Elizabeth Proctor-Part Ten

Written by

Ruth Elizabeth Proctor Cook

Joyce, Cleo, Ruth, Lois, Darrell and Kay

In July 1972, Cleo, Darrell, and I went on a little trip.  We left Menan about 7:30 a.m. and traveled to Daniel Junction, Wyoming, from there to Rock Springs, Wyoming.  We stopped here for awhile and then on to Craig, Colorado, where we stayed in a KOA Campground.  We had our pickup with camper.  We left there the next morning and arrived in Rifle, Colorado.  It was an old mining town.  Whenever we wanted to eat or rest for awhile, we always seemed to find a nice place where we could stop.  Cleo and Darrell did the driving and I was the co-pilot to both of them.  We went to Franks Plateau.  We stayed in a place that night where four states connect together--Utah, Colorado, Arizona, and New Mexico.  It is called the four corners.  They have built a large plate like thing with the name of the four states.  You can put each one of your hands in a different state and your feet in the other two, though you look like a stink bug with your boony stuck up in the air.  We all had our pictures taken there.  We parked our pickup on the New Mexico side.  Lo and behold in the middle of the night, here came a gang of people on their motorcycles.  They just kept going around and around.  They all had spot lights on their cycles.  They yelled and cursed something awful.  Someone came to our camper door and asked if they could park closer to us with their camper.  Cleo told them yes.  He wasn't about to let a bunch of dumb kids chase us away from where we were.  So they put their camper quite close to ours.  Some of the people pulled out but we stayed.  Cleo and Darrell took turns sleeping and watching.  The dumb kids had been drinking and were acting and talking very rough.  We had a family prayer and asked our Heavenly Father to watch over us.  Finally around dawn, they seemed to settle down.  I think most of them passed out.  When we did look out, they were gone but what a mess they had left there.  We settled down to get a few more winks of sleep.

Cleo and Ruth 1972 Arizona Desert 

When we did get up, the whole circle was filled with Indians.  They had cleaned up the mess the motorcycle gangs had left.  The Indians were in full head dress, the men and the ladies were in their Indian dress.  They had spread their jewelry and other things they had for sell on their Indian blankets.  They earned this money from the tourists.  I went and looked at their things.  They wanted more than I felt I could pay for them.  Darrell went around looking and found a beautiful necklace.  He said he talked with them and finally got the necklace down to price he was willing to pay for it.  He gave it to me.  Cleo talked to one of the Indians who seemed to be in charge of everything.  Cleo told him about these kids on their cycles.  He told Cleo they have had to come and clean up after them all the time.  They seem to get away before they can catch them all the time, but they were on the lookout for them to make a small mistake then they would book them.  We ate our breakfast there, then we left for Tuba, Arizona, on to Wickenburg, Kingman.  We always stopped at points of interest along the way and ate when we became hungry.  We arrived at the Grand Canyon; it was quite a sight to see.  We took picture there.  We were on the west rim of the Grand Canyon.  We went to New Mexico and saw the Indian ruins.  We went through their homes.  We went into a ceremonial room where they performed their weddings.  You had to stoop down very low to get through their doorways.  Some places we had to crawl.  It was all very interesting.  When we left the Grand Canyon, we came out through Williams, then on to Flagstaff and Phoenix, Arizona.  There they had a six lane highway.  Darrell did a lot of the driving, and we were watched over and blessed.

Cleo and Ruth 1972

We stayed one night in Circle City, Arizona at a KOA Campground.  We could use their showers, which we did.  I washed and dried our clothes and we used their swimming pools.  It wasn't very far from the air force base and planes and jets flew over all night long, so we didn't get much sleep that night.  We went to Hoover Dam.  We drove around the dam.  It was great to see.  From here we went on to Las Vegas.  We pulled into Kings Row Campground for campers and motor homes.  This is one of the neatest that we stayed in.  We locked our camper and pickup and down the strip we went.  Seems like I was lucky on each machine I played, but Cleo and Darrell lost everything they put in.  They ask me to trade with them.  I did and those machines paid me good.  Darrell wasn't questioned so we let him play while he was with us.  We played for awhile and they kept losing, so Cleo said for us to go back to the campground.  I told Cleo I was going to put a dollar in a machine.  He said I would just lose it.  I told him I had won all night.  I had $10.00 in my pocket I had gotten off the other slots.  Glory be, I put it in and the bells began to right and lights flashed and out started came the coins.  I won $25.00.  They came around with drinks on the house but we told them we didn't drink so to give it to people who did.  Some guy that was quite drunk told Darrell he would help get the money.  Darrell gave him a shove and said we didn't need any help. 

Darrell 1972

While we were on the trip, we went to Lake Mead and Lake Powell.  There were a lot of house boats on Lake Powell.  We also went through Fort Crawford, saw lots of wild life in the mountains we traveled through.  We saw Bear Creek Falls.  It drops 227 ft.  It was sure something to see.  After we left Las Vegas, I told Cleo I would take good old Idaho any day.  We traveled on to St. George and drove around the temple grounds, got out and stretched our legs.  We went through Circleville, Utah.  It wasn't a very large town, so we went on to Richfield, Utah and spent the night there.  We were driving around and passed a church with a ball diamond.  We stopped to watch.  One ward didn't have enough players, so they asked Darrell to play.  Darrell went out to left field for them and caught some good long fly balls.  When he came to bat, he hit one over the fence and they had two runners on base.  They asked him where he lived and if he would be interested in moving to Richfield.  One fellow told him that no one on that team or any other team had hit a ball over that fence in center field.  Darrell had fun and it was fun for us to watch him. 

Darrell 1972

We stopped in Salt Lake City and visited with Opal and Atha.  Then we came on home to Menan, our good old home.

Ruth and Cleo

Cleo was athletic director in our ward and he felt like someone else was doing the job he should do.  I enjoyed going to the games and watching the kids play.  I started keeping score for our ward when Franklin started playing softball.  I also kept score for the men, ladies volleyball and men basketball games in our ward, stake and regional games.  You might wonder why Kay wasn't with us on this trip as he and Darrell were the only ones home at this time.  Kay was planning on getting married in August and had a job so he had to stay home and go to work.  I would have loved to have had him with us.  We had a fun trip. 

Also this summer the Proctor reunion was held in Saratoga.  That is out of Lehi, Utah.  That is the last Proctor reunion Cleo went to.  

Vicky, Kirsten and Freeman Anderson, Bruce and Annie Jaynes
Frank and George Jaynes, Cleo

George and Annie Carol Jaynes, Opal and Atha Staker
VaNeta and Jim Proctor, Ruth and Cleo Cook