Family, Friends & Fellow Officers Remember...

So nigh is grandeur to our dust, so near is God to man, when duty whispers low, thou must, the youth replies, I can. This was what you desired to become, officer Cook, since you were a boy scout and probably long before. You had the type of charisma needed to police Dade County and its streets. Never to be out of sight or out of our hearts and prayers. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 12, 2013

What I must do is all that concerns me, not what the people think. You always had the publice's trust in your mind, Officer Cook, when you went out on patrol and this is what made you the officer that was confident in his abilities. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 12, 2013

For it's always fair weather when good fellows get together with a stein on the table and a good song ringing clear. I know your friends and fellow officers miss this day being able to break bread with you, Officer Cook and raise a glass of wine to toast to good health, peace and prosperity. As some of your colleagues reflected, it's a tragedy you cannot be with us. But they will always remember your warmth, compassion and congeniality. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 11, 2013

It is only when mind and character slumber that the dress can be seen. If officers do not live up to their solemn and professional responsibilities, then they make all other officers look bad and cause dishonor to their departments. You wore your uniform very proudly, Officer Cook. You were the pride of the Metro-Dade Police Department. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 11, 2013

Your family knows Officer Cook that if there is anything that I may be of help to them, they call reach me. I'll always try to be there for your special family. Officers like yourself do not fall upon us everyday. We shall not, I believe, be obliged to alter our policy of watchful waiting. Police work is not like medicine in the sense that if you knew something is wrong, you just cannot stand by and do nothing. You were the consummate professional, Officer Cook, who contributed mightily to your department and to its community. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 11, 2013

We may well be unable to afford to be the world's policeman, but neither can we afford to fail to live up to the responsibilities that the accidents of a bountiful land and beneficent fate have placed upon us. because of your heroic actions, Officer Cook, we are able to live a bountiful life filled with all the pleasures that God can bestow upon us. You will never be forgotten my neighbor, friend and hero. If we as citizens can live up to half of your capabilities, we should be able to overcome the evil that pervades society. Rest in peace. Officers can never be compensated enough for what they represent and possibly have to surrender in order to secure our freedom.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 11, 2013

The longest day must have its close-the gloomiest night will wear on to a morning. An eternal, inexorable lapse of moments is ever hurrying the day of the evil to an eternal night and the night of the just to an eternal day. That first night and day after an officer loses their life on duty is undoubtedly the longest, saddest time for their family, fellow officers and friends. But it is fine to mourn and be tearful, to remember how not only they performed, but how heroically they carried on in life. Officer Cook, your family and forty-one other Metro-Dade families all share this burden of grief and it is up to your department and community to console them and help ease them if you can ever say that word in that context. We all share your family's anguish, sorrow, burden and they know as we know that your soul is now resting in peace my neighbor, friend and hero in God's shelter where He looks after you as you so solemnly watch over us.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 10, 2013

There is a mysterious cycle in human events. To some generations much is given. Of others much is expected. The generation of Americans has a rendezvous with destiny. And indeed, Officer Cook, we don't know our last day. officers, anyone who sweats, labors and toils on our behalf never knows when their day of joining God will occur. You were one of God's talented servants who was granted the years you had to perform special wonders for His people and you served with only distinction and the integrity that can only unify a community like no other officer can do. The mystery of life always fascinates me, my neighbor, friend and hero, Officer Cook. I am very grateful for the opportunity to have met some of your beloved family members. They like you and your parents will always have a special place in my heart that is reserved for them. Rest in peace.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 10, 2013

The thirst for adventure is the vent which destiny offers; a war, a crusade, a gold mine, a new country, speak to the imagination and offer swing and play to the confined powers. All of the above, Officer Cook was for you and Karen to enjoy and for your families to spend quiet times gathered together during the holidays. But your zeal for contentment in a civil and humane manner superceded all of the above. You always went out of your way to pursue what was deemed proper and fitting to modern society. Bravery and valor come together to form a true bond that can never be broken. Stretched a little but never snapped in half. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 10, 2013

Destiny is not a matter of chance, it is a matter of choice; it is not a thing to be waited for, it is a thing to be achieved. Your destiny Officer Cook, was to respond to a call without be told to do so and for this you are to be highly commended. You chanced your very being as all police officers do to help pacify and to calm a young man down and convince him to surrender peacefully without being harmed. You and your colleagues used tact and your training to do as much as you possibly could. If things did not go so wrong in that instance, we may never know, but your courage and valor from that day forward will forever standout among your comrades before you who too laid down their lives in the pursuit of truth and justice. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 10, 2013

Democracy gives every man the right to be his own oppressor. Democracy may give a person the right to bear arms, but not the right to commit murder of a law enforcement officer or officers and the freedom to willfully obstruct justice the way they see fit. Police officers have to exercise when to act with their weapons and when to step back and assess the situation. Officer Cook, you exercised the greatest restraint I can think of, but you knew exactly how to respond to assist your fellow officers and the civilians who were threatened by a man who thought violence was honorable which of course it never will be. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 10, 2013

Henceforward, listen as we will, the voices of that breath are still; look where we may, the wide earth o'er those lighted faces smile no more....We turn the pages that they read, their written words we linger o'er, but in the sun they cast no shade, no voice is heard, no sign is made, no step is on the conscious floor! Yet love will dream and faith will trust since He who knows our need is just, that somehow, somewhere, meet we must. We will meet you once again, my neighbor, friend and hero, Officer Cook. We turn the page, but we keep returning to the why part of it. Why did God call for you that day? What will we do without your physical being guiding us each step of the way? One answer is your cherished soul now serves as our compass leading us to new adventures, higher heights and mountains too steep to climb. We may not see your gorgeous smile, but we still can feel the warmth that exuded from your cheerful spirit. Rest in peace.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 10, 2013

On fame's eternal camping ground their silent tents are spread and glory guards, with solemn round, the bivouac of the dead. Your sacred burial site, Officer Cook, is for all to visit and leave a note or something to honor you by. Your fortitude was indeed marvelous and your outstanding character was beyond reproach. You served with loyalty and enabled us to have a new lease on life. Just wished officers as brave as you could receive a new lease on life. God now grants you eternal life so that your soul may travel wherever it deems necessary. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero. each person is born to one last possession which outvalues all the others-his last breath and yours, Officer Cook, was spent in doing honorable and praiseworthy situations.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 10, 2013

At end of love, at end of life, at end of hope, at end of strife, at end of all we cling to so-the sun is setting-must we go? At dawn of love, at dawn of life, at dawn of peace that follows strife, at dawn of all we long for so-the sun is rising-let us go. Officer Cook, I'm sure you would want to be here and we all wished you were to be with your beloved wife, Karen, your mother, sister and all your family members watching the beautiful sunrise and sunsets. Snapping off pictures of nature and all that is good in this world. You were that dignified officer who preserved life and helped deliver life into the world. Your gallantry shows us that men and women like yourself do make a difference in how we conduct ourselves. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 10, 2013

Death, however, is a spongy wall, is a sticky river, is nothing at all. Of course when someone you know and love, admire and respect passes suddenly, the eyes well up and and a flood of tears comes pouring out and this is exactly what transpired when you left us, Officer Cook. Giving your being back to God who brought you into this world to do just what He planned for you to do and this is to serve, protect and defend our freedoms so liberty and justice for all could be achieved. There is not anything more nobler, more heroic, than to lay your life down so we can continue living our lives as we choose. Police officers don't always get to choose these things. Your twenty-five years were lived in a most prolific and productive manner. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 10, 2013

There is no confessor like unto death! Thou cannot see Him, But he is near: Thou need not whisper above thy breath and he will hear. God hears our requests very well and tests us daily to see how we handle adversity. On May 16, 1979, Our Creator tested us when You, Officer Cook, gave your life for Dade County and your memory continues to rain down only goodness on those you loved. Your family, colleagues and friends who supported you and were there in your last moments hoping you would survive the brutality that ended your young and promising career with so much more to offer this world. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 10, 2013

The grave itself is but a covered bridge leading from light to light, through a brief darkness! You have passed from this world, Officer Cook, but the light of your tender soul will always dispel the cloud of darkness that hovers above us. Your community remembers you pious actions and fervent assistance that you gave to others. One dark moment cannot last forever and you'll always be thought of and held in high regard. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 10, 2013

Fast as the rolling seasons bring, the hour of fate to those we love, each pearl that leaves the broken string is set in friendship's crown above. As narrower grows the earthly chain, the circle widens in the sky; these are our treasures that remain, but those are stars that beam on high. Whenever an officer loses their lives in the performance of their duties, of course, we are sad, their families, friends and colleagues lose someone that was very special and unique to them. They brought something intrinsic to their departments and communities and yet while the chain may have broken, they will forever remain in our hearts and souls always. One cannot extinguish a love done's soul, it continues beating and burning more brighter now than ever. Your special soul, Officer Cook will always and will forever continue burning brighter than ever since that fateful day of May 16, 1979 and you will always remain ingrained in our beings for eternity. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero. The entire nation suffers greatly when one of their own is lost in the line of duty and the strong lean upon death as on a rock. Your mother, Mrs. Julia Cook, may she live and be well, has the heart and spirit, as solid as a rock to continue living after your father's passing and your passing. Her devotion to God has sustained her and has allowed her to witness happy occasions within your loving family. All officers are pearls in that you open them and you immediately know they are very special indeed.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 10, 2013

Gone are the days when my heart was young and gay, gone are my friends from the cotton fields away, gone from the earth to a better land I know. You were so young and vibrant, Officer Cook and there was so much more promise and achievements left for you to fulfill. God needed a guardian angel to join the other twenty-thousand officers who continue to watch over us and you were called to do so. You are accomplishing a very special mission for now and will always be looked upon as our shining hero, the honor, dignity and integrity that you stood for will not be replicated and you'll never be forgotten. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 10, 2013

The world feels dusty when we stop to die; we want the dew then, honors taste dry. There was not a dry eye in St. Mary's Cathedral the day of your Inspector's Funeral, Officer Cook, all your friends and colleagues gathered to offer you one final and tearful salute for your service with valor and bravery. If I had attended, I'm sure I would have been sobbing like a baby. I did that at your parent's home, some thirty plus years later. You sure were brave and loyal. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 9, 2013

Rock-ribbed and ancient as the sun,-the vales stretching in pensive quietness between; the venerable woods-rivers that move in majesty and the complaining brooks that make the meadows green; and poured around all, old ocean's gray and melancholy waste,-are but the solemn decorations all of the great tomb of man. Your ledger, gravestone, Officer Cook, symbolizes what you meant to all mankind, going the extra mile to sacrifice on our behalf for a safer nation and community. God is always in all directions so we know where to look for your cherished soul that will forever shine down brightly on your loving family, colleagues and friends. Since every death diminishes us a little, we grieve-not so much for the death as for ourselves. Your passing as well as the passing of all law enforcement personnel always leaves our nation with more to reflect on not only how you performed your duties, but how gracefully you lived your lives. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 9, 2013

I am in the burying place may see, graves shorter than I; from death's arrest no age is free, young children too may die. All police officers are the children to their loving parents and when they are sudden taken away from them, their communities and modern society is denied the right to see them directly still making an impact in their places of residence, But we all realize the sacrifices they made to serve and protect us, so that we can carry on with our hopes, dreams and aspirations as they did. Officer Cook, you may be gone, but you'll always be remembered as an inspiration to so many other officers who have gone on as you so faithfully did in executing your duties to make us all safer. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero. I do visit your grave and it gives me time to pause and reflect. You were truly a classy and decent person.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 9, 2013

An utterly fearless man is a far more dangerous comrade than a coward. No one is totally fearless. But police officers when they enter the police academy are made aware of the risks and the rewards of the profession. Officer Cook, you were simply a very caring, a very honest and dedicated police officer who without any shadow of a doubt made a deep impact in the Dade County Community that will always represent your legacy. Your fine work revitalized a community and your ability not to panic and to try and bring a peaceful resolution to a situation that escalated into violence was truly amazing and you'll never be forgotten for this. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 9, 2013

No man ever looks at the world with pristine eyes. He sees it edited by a definite set of customs, institutions and ways of thinking. Police officers like all people have to keep their eyes and ears open at all times to alert themselves of any possible troubles. You gazed out into society, Officer Cook and looked at the bright side of things, always positive and reassuring. No one can fault you for your actions on May 16, 1979, which took on a much more reverent meaning. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 6, 2013

In general those who have nothing to say contrive to spend the longest time in doing it; they turn and vary it in every way, hashing it, stewing it, mincing it rehashing it. You did not mice words, Officer Cook and when you had to speak your mind, you did so without any reservations. You raised to speak when spoken to and your fine manners translated into an upstanding career. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

June 6, 2013