Family, Friends & Fellow Officers Remember...

A morsel of genuine history, a thing so rare as to be always valuable. And a valued team member of the Metro-Dade Police Department you were Officer Cook. If one were to read a morsel of your life and career story, it certainly would enhance the knowledge of the ordinary citizen who may not know what transpires behind the scenes of crime work. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero. Your legacy is now and forever written the history of all men and women who have served their communities with distinction, courage and nobility. Through your family members, your legacy does march on as time and the decades keeping coming.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 14, 2014

History fades into fable, facts become clouded with doubt and controversy, the inscription molders from the tablet, the statue falls from the pedestal. Columns, arches, pyramids-what are they but heaps of sand? And their epitaphs, but characters written in the dust. A page of history is worth a volume of logic. Nothing cloudy about what transpired to you, Officer Cook, on May 16, 1979. The etching on the marble wall at Tropical Park in Miami, Florida, the writing-the inscription on your gravestone says it all. The heroism and bravery you exhibited now stands forever as your legacy along with other Dade County police heroines and heroes. Fables are just that, courage and valor are more than utilizing and employing logic and factual instincts. The book "Forgotten Heroes" is a factual accounting of all the brave men and women of law enforcement who sadly were placed in a "forced retirement" circumstance by their loyal actions meant to eradicate wickedness from our society of which you were a valued member and a faithful contributor. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 13, 2014

Happiness to some elation; is to others, mere stagnation. You brought joy, pride and honor to your family, friends and colleagues, Officer Cook, your personality lit up a room and in some way brought laughter to those a bit downtrodden. A stagnant person you weren't, a strong warrior who was not afraid to get down in the pits to supplant the evil that still grows. You took on whatever came your way with the same seriousness and passion as anything you ever had to deal with. Your grit and determination would have taken you if you were still with us to even greater heights and I'll safely say this. The gem in you was never to abandon your colleagues in times of trouble, something the date of May 16, 1979, will always be fresh in our minds and in the memories of a purely wonderful individual. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 12, 2014

I have a rendezvous with death at some disputed barricade, when spring comes around with rustling shade and apple blossoms fill the air. Police officers are always reminded of the risks that are associated with their chosen profession and you readily accepted all challenges that were placed before you. All the bitterness, all the tears shed at your service as you were being laid to rest with so much more to fulfill, deeds still remaining, it is now up to us to accept these challenges and to utilize our strengths in life to help us to overcome our weaknesses in good health, peace and prosperity. To make the legitimacy of your legacy a sterling bond where in which all people shall prosper. "We Shall Be One" now takes on a more deeper meaning and from now on all of our destinies should always be for the sake of heaven. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero. Your heroism helped make one community liberty and justice for all.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 12, 2014

So live when thy summons comes to join the innumerable caravan that moves to the pale realm of shade, where each shall take his chamber in the silent halls of death, thou go not like the quarry-slave at night, scourged to his dungeon, but, sustained and soothed like one who wraps the drapery of his couch about him and lies down to pleasant dreams. When it comes time for all of us to receive that eternal subpoena, one cannot refuse that as God determines our destinies. Your journey in life and in your career as a police officer, Officer Cook, was based on solid principles of faith to God, along with your beloved wife, Karen. It was brought into focus by being loyal, devoted, dedicated and devoted to duty. The day of May 16, 1979, was a day of remembrance and reflection as one of Metro-Dade County Police Department's humble and a most revered public servant, Officer William C. Cook, Badge#1664, through careful collaboration helped to assist in the emancipation of those residents who had been shackled by hardships. You helped to remove these roadblocks and were a steady and most deserving influence on other officers. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero, hard work and honesty go hand in hand in helping develop a plan of action. Something you always had in mind when attacking a problem that could arise from time to time.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 11, 2014

It is of some comfort to us both that the term is not very distant at which we are to deposit in the same cerement our sorrows and suffering bodies and to ascend in essence to an ecstatic meeting with the friends we have loved and lost and whom we shall still love and never lose again. Your spirit has never left us, Officer Cook, it's only your voice and physical being that has departed this world and that was only because of a troubled young man who endeavored to take out his frustrations against law enforcement. You labored, fought a good battle with heroic police actions that have us inspiring to follow your professional pathways and most of all and more importantly you carried with you in class, dignity, honor, bravery, courage and valor. All while working your hardest and steadiest to bring about liberty and togetherness. Your colleagues, your family and friends have always loved you, will continue loving and admiring and missing you so very dearly. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 11, 2014

Time has laid his hand upon my heart, gently, not smiting it, but as a harpist lays his open palm upon his harp, to deaden its vibrations. God has laid His open hands over you, Officer Cook and those comrades of yours who have paid the ultimate sacrifice to insure unity and peace continues in the community. Because of your honorable and heroic performance over and above the calls of duty, you'll forever be remembered for collaborating in the fight against evil. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero. Time generally heals most wounds, though your loss will always be felt as your legacy is revered.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 11, 2014

When death puts out our flame, the snuff will tell, if we are wax, or tallow, by the smell. All who ever live at some point they pass from this world. It's what a person makes of themselves that counts in the end. Did they speak well and do good deeds? Well, we can say with great clarity, Officer Cook, that you both lived a well meaningful life, exemplified by your kindness, consideration and compassion, as well as taking those examples and carrying them over to the Metro-Dade Police Department and loyally served your community, standing for all and in the end giving your all through courage and valor, unlike no other. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero, your ship may have come in, but the voyage your soul is now on can forever travel wherever it deems necessary to watch over those souls here on this earth, who dig down and try to remove the wickedness that seems to obstruct our venues in society.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 10, 2014

Because I could not stop for death, it kindly stopped for me; the carriage held but just ourselves and immortality. This is the hour of lead remembered if outlived as freezing persons recollect the snow- first chill, then stupor, then this letting go. The day you were laid to rest, Officer Cook, from what I have gleamed was a bright and sunny day, hot just as the day you gave your life for all Dade County. People gathering that evening at the old Bennett and Ulm chapel for your visitation and then the next day at St. Mary's Cathedral for your Inspector's Funeral, if I had been there, I probably would have seen many a tear shed to honor a very well planned and accomplished life and police career. They gathered and came to honor one of their own, yourself for what you represented, your upbringing, with all you achieved in twenty-five years, it seems just too short, your bravery to act and save your fellow colleagues and those three civilians, it's easy to see why those paying their respects would be in a stupor. The passing of your dad, Charles, in 1976, as told to me by your nephew, Justin and then your untimely passing, may you rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero. Your mother, may she live and be well, had to have a heart of pure gold and the spiritual resourcefulness to see through these terrible tragedies. Your family should only know happy times and you should be here for them. I'm sure the pain she experienced by these losses, well it is difficult to completely put it in words. I'll say she is one great woman and I'm happy she took the time to answer my letter and write back to me a most beautiful and very sentimentally moving letter even though we never had the chance to meet. I think of my parents, may they rest in peace, but I still always think about you and your life and career, having both grown up in North Miami Beach, Florida. Sometimes the cruelest of fates seems to bond and bring people closer together than any other time.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 10, 2014

The reason of idleness and crime is the deferring of our hopes. While we are waiting we beguile the time with jokes, with sleep, with eating and with crimes. What is the reason why we have such dedicated and diligent police officers such as yourself, Officer Cook? The answer is to fight crime and in order to fight this battle, you need the proper approaches and it's up to the citizens and the communities at large need to plan ahead along with their devoted crime fighters. Your resourcefulness my neighbor, friend and hero along with a compassion like no other and a passionate attitude to match help sway the scales of justice upward in a positive direction. I'd say yourself and those comrades of yours before you who heroically paid the ultimate price are icons for all future police officers to look up to and to admire. Rest in peace. People can sleep sounder, eat however they want and be a little more jovial, because of your sense of fair play coupled with your gregarious sense of humor when needed to lighten the atmosphere.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 9, 2014

All of us confront limits of body, talent, temperament. But that is not all. We are, all of us, also constrained by our time, our place, our civilization. We are bound by the culture we have in common, that culture which distinguishes us from other people in other times and places. Cultural constraints condition and limit our choices, shaping our characters with imperatives. All of us including our police officers, the many brave women and men who confront dilemmas and different situations in which they are asked to tackle and endeavor to resolve. Your resolve, Officer Cook, was one of boldness, that when combined with honesty and bravery made for one powerful combination. The rapport you had with the citizens certainly enhanced your chances each time out of being successful. The time and place plays a central role in how each problem can be rectified so that a peaceful solution will bring about the most accepted positive outcome that will only help serve a community will a level of freedom and unity. We all try to bring together all people from different backgrounds and that is and what was your central obligation while duly serving as a Metro-Dade Police Officer. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero. In your time, Officer Cook, culture shock was nothing new, it still exists in our society today and your courage to conquer this is exactly why we have the chances to make our lives much more greater today as opposed to years past.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 8, 2014

Speak clearly, if you speak at all; carve every word before you let it fall....and when you stick on conversation's burrs, don't strew your pathway with those dreadful words that do not make any sense. You were brought up, Officer Cook, speaking when spoken to and with a sense of purpose that which emanated from your lips. Your family can forever love you and treasure all the more the beautiful memories of a humble life well-lived and a police career well served with honor, dignity and all the integrity that law enforcement call upon from its own. Your messages were like a fresh head of lettuce, in that it was insightful, so sparkling that you could hardly notice the bitterness in it. Your sacrifice helped emancipate those residents still tied up in the bonds of evil and your bravery will standout for all generations to come. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero. Sometimes I could wonder how you could stay relatively calm when facing the wickedness head on. I know your comrades that day are forever grateful for what you did on their behalf, so too the citizens. Anytime you lay down your life for the betterment of society, we should all stop and take serious notice.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 8, 2014

Stop not, unthinking, every friend you meet to spin your wordy fabric in the street; while you are enjoying your colloquial pack, the fiend lumbago jumps upon his back. Just still hard to imagine the terror that day that was unleashed against you and your comrades, Officer Cook. Every person you encountered was as pleasant an experience as one can dream of. No fancy twenty-five dollars words had to be spoken. You could get your point across, Officer Cook, with a few simple expressions. It wasn't lumbago, more mental. It was a very disturbed young man looking for a quick fix to a more complex problem-dealing with his life as he visualized it. Your heroic action was as visual as it gets. Now the whole community where you served passionately and the entire country where all your colleagues go through the same channels to ensure peace and unity can be visualized as you guide them from heaven. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 8, 2014

The music that can reach the deepest and help to cure all is cordial speech. When you speak to someone, look on their eyes; when they speak to you, look toward their mouth. One has to grow up with good speech to form the habit of it. Officer Cook, you were a gentleman who did not mince words. Your refined and clean speech were gifts you acquired and since your parents raised you and Nancy, your sister with proper manners it's no wonder that you were revered by all. A police officer's lips can either raise their job performance to another level, or like loose lips that can sink ships, it can have a very devastating affect. Your calming voice has and continues this day to resonate very soundly within your division and in your department. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero. The fluidity of your soul continues its quest through God's heavenly abode as you patrol His golden streets keeping your keen eyes focused on the war of evil being waged on this earth. The heroism you displayed on May 16, 1979, has and always will be spoken about in the highest regard, one conversation that will never go silent.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 7, 2014

In conversation the idea is to say something new with old words and you shall observe a man of the people picking his way along, step by step, using every time an old boulder, yet never setting foot on an old place. As you were an excellent officer for the people of Dade County, Officer Cook, your measured your words, spoke calmly, softly and yet were able to convey a message to all. Sometimes today I i think this message is lost in the proper translation. You were a well spoken and traveled man in both the outdoors and during your service. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero. Your reflective tones are sorely missed today.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 7, 2014

If we ever learn to treat the living with the tenderness with which we instinctively treat those who have passed from this world, we shall then have a civilization well worth distributing. It's still a shame that the American flag was taken from your grave, Officer Cook and the pinwheels that I placed down were broken in half, to shame a young man, a hero in spirit and in character, I hope I never see that happen again. You gave up too much for us for that to occur. Your family misses you, everyone misses you, whenever I visit your grave, I stop to pause and genuinely reflect back upon the life and career you excelled in through deeds and honorable speech. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero, our mannerisms, our language should mirror that of your clean cut image. A gentleman with a tender heart.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 6, 2014

One man lies in his work and gets a bad reputation; another in his manners and enjoys a good one. Since you were born in California, Officer Cook, whatever starts in California, obviously it could be anyplace has an inclination to spread. You good name traveled around twenty-five hundred miles to the sandy shores of South Florida where you grew up and went on to humbly stated a very satisfying life with your family, amassing a multitude of friends, meeting and marrying a wonderful and charming woman, who like yourself worked in a profession that called for the same work habits and ingredients as yours called for. You are very much missed and the hero in you will never get lost or shadowed. Your legacy is wide spread as is your beloved soul for it now can travel wherever and whenever to look after those down here on God's green earth who patrol the streets as loyally and as resourcefully as you did. The police career you undertook was a harbinger of good things to come for the most part. Still nothing can ever erase the bitterness and pain the entire Dade County police fraternity and police world at large experienced when you lost your young life at age twenty-five while in the line of duty fulfilling the hopes and dreams you had since you were a young man. Right until the end you endeavored to battle and were determined to come out of a fierce battle unifying Dade County citizens who at that time were in the midst of racial tensions. You acted properly and without regret in saving your colleagues and those three civilians. Dade County was able to move forward because of your loving concern and compassion for all. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero, you deserve the biggest salute one can ever receive. You made us all proud, even those who did not know you personally.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 6, 2014

And step by step, since time began, I see the steady gain of man. No doubt but it is safe to dwell where ordered duties are; no doubt the cherubs earn their wage, who wind each ticking star; no doubt the system is quite right!-Sane, ordered, regular; but how the rebel fires the soul who dares the strong Gods' ire! The men and women of law enforcement who bravely go out on their patrols making a niche in society and their communities all do so because for them this is their calling. Sadly, when Our Creator comes and calls there can be no turning back the clock and the wings of time. You dared, Officer Cook, you explored what was out there lurking with its ugly head and waiting to take your turn so to speak at bat to try and ward off this harmful menace whose chilling effect spoke volumes. You always had the worries and concerns of the citizens high atop resting squarely on your courageous shoulders. What more can we ask of our loyal and determined police officers?o Around twenty-one thousand of these highly efficient officers had these same worries, they too enhanced society by being sane, orderly and regular in honor, dignity and in integrity which needs to become more of a sounding board. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero. We want our officers to be safe and sound, to return home to all their families after their shifts, to be successful in all their diligence to duty. The badges and uniforms you all wear should mean something and to you my neighbor, friend and hero, Officer William C. Cook, Badge#1664 certainly meant the world and the honor you afforded it and to those you faithfully served.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 6, 2014

Every generation must go further than the last or what is the use in it? I do not mean to say we are bound to follow implicity in whatever our fathers did. To do so would be to discard all the rights of current experience-to reject all progress, all improvement. Progress is not a one night stay, all or nothing. To say that life is a work in progress, well you need the dedicated resources and the full cooperation of all police officers and the citizens too. These are our true heroes and heroines who along with those citizens they serve and protect defend our rights to peace and unity. And you were among many of these finely trained and high skilled and motivated officers, Officer Cook, who made a huge difference in their community. I'm sure when the people saw you out on patrol in your car, going in and around the area with your bright smile, the only thing they would think is that we are in good hands. Sensible, serene and sure in confidence and charisma, along with the many other good work habits of character that made your all too brief career successful. We would like for you to be here, everyone, your loving family members, comrades who went to war on the streets with you and your personal friends of both you and Karen. The reason why sometimes things move along at a snail's pace is because it takes people time to catch up and things need to move in unison. You united people through careful planning and your calm approaches to rather difficult and challenging situations. In the end it made you a better person and a sure top flight officer with the Metro-Dade Police Department. A true hero was lost that day, but you'll always be remembered for unifying a community where bedlam, kayos, mayhem and strife would have torn it apart. Five minutes or five seconds and things can snowball out of hand, but your actions cutoff what might have been worse. The humble hero saved the day, Officer Cook, your honor without any doubt was a calming effect. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero. It should never ever take a tragedy to affect progress, it has to come from within a community and its officers steering the legal ship on its right course. Modern society will be indebted forever to you, Officer Cook.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 6, 2014

I think it probable that civilization somehow will last as long as I care to look ahead-perhaps with smaller numbers, but perhaps also bred to greatness and splendor by science. I think it is not improbable that man, like the grub that prepares a chamber for the winged thing it never has seen but is to be-that man may have cosmic destinies that he does not understand. And so beyond the vision of battling races and an impoverished earth I catch a dreaming glimpse of peace. Dade County I want to believe will always respect and remember its heroes and heroines of the law enforcement community who stood in there face to face with evil and with bravery, courage and a stoic face gave their lives so we the citizens can live as we choose to. No one knows their destiny, Officer Cook, you were this type of uniquely skilled and very well qualified officer who leaned on people for advice and utilized your voice to maintain a calmness during a calamity and on May 16, 1979, this came to full fruition, through your unselfishess to act and respond in a dignified manner to keep peace as best you could considering the dilemma you faced. You were professional, so consummate and compassionate and this won't ever be forgotten. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 5, 2014

Nature speaks in symbols and in signs and her pictures human fate divines. The harp at nature's advent strung has never ceased to play; the song the stars of morning sung has never died away. The only thing that is the most important in a person's life is how they comport themselves. You did this, Officer Cook, with honor and respect for the position, for the law enforcement profession of which you wore a badge and donned a uniform with only integrity and went out into Dade County streets to bring unity and peace together as one theme. Your service and protection helped rein in the ghastly wickedness that seems to undermine our society and what is good and bad about certain issues which police officers still have to deal with on a daily basis. Your heroic measures on May 16, 1979 have allowed citizens to function as they should and to pursue the good things in life. The same things you pursued as you were still in high school marching to the beats of your band with those drums in hand. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero. Your conversations were more than symbols, they were means of conveying an important message to all concerned. They represented, Godliness, faith, devotion and loyalty to all folks. This all has to start in a person's home and yours was akin to a humble and loving environment.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 5, 2014

Woodman, spare that tree! Touch not a single bough! In youth it sheltered me and I'll protect it now. Where you rest in peace now, my neighbor, friend and hero, Officer Cook, there is a large tree near your grave where the squirrels climb up the trees with the food they find. I'm pretty sure you spent some time in the woods hunting or maybe going on a survival camp out with your boy scout troop. In God's great wilderness lies the hope of the world-the great fresh unblighted, unredeemed wilderness. Your righteousness has fortified our reasons to pursue that which is noble and everything you stood for in life, now takes on a much more deeper meaning because of your sacrifice on behalf of all Dade County residents of which you too were a proud and passionate citizen who led by example in speech and in deed. Rest in peace.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 4, 2014

Come, wander with me into regions untrod; and read what is still unread in the manuscripts of God. Now you can wander and travel, Officer Cook, wherever God determines His need for you. You were His ever so faithful and loyal servant, who stood forth in your efforts to bridge the gaps of unity and make peace what it should legitimately be, a common theme for all. Your dependability was legendary, your commitment, unwavering, your compassion as soothing and as calming as your voice, softly representing the goodwill that exists in all mankind. One does not need any manuscript to see what you became, just travel to Washington, D.C. and Miami, Florida and you can personally witness heroism firsthand. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 3, 2014

I believe I meant to say in a previous reflection, that you took a risk, Officer Cook, to insure freedom and liberty for each citizen in Dade County. Beneath some patriarchal tree I lay upon the ground, God's big arms uplifted me, clapped their little hands in glee, with one continuous sound. Silently, one by one, in the infinite meadows of heaven, blossomed the lovely stars, the forget-me-nots of the angels. You are resting in peace my neighbor, friend and hero with Our Creator's big arms holding your treasured soul and looking down on your family, friends and colleagues guiding them down safe pathways. We can only imagine the life and career you led by example in humility and grace, that only a mother and father would be very proud of. The silence may be deafening, the cries of hope and gladness persevere, for we know you'll always be so dear. Rest in peace.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 3, 2014

The marshes, how candid and simple, nothing withholding and free, you publish yourselves to the sky and offer yourselves to the sea. You carried yourself, Officer Cook, with an openness and candor for all to see, your dignity, courage and bravery was easy to see. You served and protected Dade County so well, the day Dade County bid you a fond farewell, it was at St. Mary's Cathedral one could look up and hear the bell. It was tolling to remind each and everyone of us the sacrifice you made for our honor and pride to pursue whatever we choose to aspire to. You dreamed, you put in long hours of very demanding work and the effort to match and that is why you're our hero, whose beloved soul can now take its proper place in heaven with our heroes and heroines of the past, who like you served with distinction befitting your position. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero. Candidness is one of many assets that police officers need to utilize wisely.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 3, 2014