Family, Friends & Fellow Officers Remember...

Police Officer William Coleman Cook

Metro-Dade Police Department, Florida

End of Watch Wednesday, May 16, 1979

Leave a Reflection

Reflections for Police Officer William Coleman Cook

The less a man thinks or knows about his virtues, the better we like him. History will record your willingness, Officer Cook to think "outside the box" and step beyond the call of duty in order to save your comrades and those two civilians. The legacy you left this world with is how you will forever be rgarded as a hero for sure. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero. As humble as you were my neighbor, friend and hero, we shall carry on your fine work and remember as such. Rest in peace.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

May 9, 2013

Caution is the confidential agent of selfishness. Caution in police work is not always viewed in terms of being negative. Deruliction is something that cannot be tolerated from any officers. Turning off one's radio and leaving before your shift is over can be dangerous to other officers whose very lives may be jeopardized by such officers. It's obvious, Officer Cook, your compassion and passion when meshed together produced good results most of the time. No one would ever fault you for going above and beyond the call of duty to help your fellow officers and for what you did on their behalf on May 16, 1979, you will always be saluted and honored accordingly by your department and its rank and file members. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

May 9, 2013

We know what a person thinks not when he tells us what he thinks, but by his actions. The Dade County community at large knew you, Officer Cook and for what you represented in ideas and ideals. This legacy speaks loud and clear for what we demand in all police officers in their calls to duty. You stood front and center and sized up the problem and endeavored to bring about a peaceful resolution to something that was very serious and life threatening indeed. Well done! Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

May 9, 2013

Get action. Seize the moment. Man was never intended to become an oyster. Oysters produce pearls. You were a gem of an officer, Officer Cook. You walked the walk and talked the talk backing up your voice and reason with passion, charm and grace underfire and I wish as your family and friends do, that you were still with us today. You'll always be here in spirit and it's your loving spirit that is guiding us on our specific journeys through life indeed. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

May 9, 2013

Rhetoric is a poor substitute for action and we have trusted to rhetoric. If we are really to be a great nation, we must not merely talk, we must act big. Everyday officers such as yourself, Officer Cook, must act decisively and with determination in order to protect their communities. Your brave act showed us your determination to make a big difference in our society and you will be adored by all forevermore. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

May 9, 2013

Do not delay, the golden moments fly! As one who did not procratinate, Officer Cook, you were there to assist your comrades and on that fateful day, you will forever be remembered for your time and effort to help defuse an awful situation. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

May 9, 2013

I was told something about a dozen years ago, Officer Cook and you know what that was? Speak as if the words exiting your mouth are that of honey flowing, instead of glass falling out of your lips. You probably were a gifted orator and probably now during your retirement would have made an exceptional motivational speaker, because all your deeds performed and spoken were directly from your heart. You carried out your duties with precision and care, exercising caution and restraint when needed. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

May 8, 2013

Go put your creed into the deed, not speak with double tongue. You only spoke the truth, Officer Cook, my neighbor, friend and hero. You told it like it is and your unassuming honestly continues to stand out this day. Your appreciated more than you can imagine. Rest in peace.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

May 8, 2013

Trust men and they will be true to you; treat them greatly and they will show themselves great. Everybody knows you were a great person and friend to them, Officer Cook. Your personality showed its warmth and charm, along with the necessary grace in times of strife. Now as your remembered thirty-four years later may all these positive characteristics stand out in front as your legacy for Dade County residents to reflect. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

May 8, 2013

Trust yourself, every heart vibrates to that iron string. You were the officer, Officer Cook, who trusted his instincts and knew that others trusted you. Your dogged determination made you among the best in your department, that was for sure. Your pride and courage are traits that every fine officer can learn from. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

May 8, 2013

I meant to state in a reflection on May 6, 2013 that you were among the best and brightest officers back in the day in the Central Division. Having thus chosen our course, without guile and with pure purpose, let us renew our trust in God and go forward without fear and with manly hearts. You were the man, Officer Cook, whose heroic actions on May 16, 1979, demonstrated once again, why you will not be forgotten. Action does speak louder than words. Courage on duty is better than disgrace with dereliction. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero. Your bravery reinforced the standards that are demanded of every police officer.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

May 7, 2013

As life is action and passion, it is required of a man that he should share the passion and action of his time at peril of being judged not to have lived. Your placed your existence in peril each day, Officer Cook, for the good citizens of Dade County, Florida as you were a doer not just a talker. Well done is better than well said. That being said, rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero, your concern should drive us into action and not depression, even if at times we still can't quite understand God's hidden mysteries of life and death.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

May 7, 2013

With faith there are no questions; without faith there are no answers. The only question we may be left to ponder, Officer Cook, is why did Our Creator call you to heaven when He did? The why part will be answered when your loved ones are one day reunited with you and your beloved father, Charles, may you rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero. When your loving family crosses that veil they will see you again and your soul which is hovering above in the sky is looking down and protecting your family and colleagues who are engaged in the battle of evil. Rest in peace.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

May 6, 2013

It is ours to choose between blessing-unhindered progressive development and curse-emptiness, shallowness, worthlessness. Through our own choice, we can create for ourselves one or the other of these alternative conditions. The choices we make in our lives are so very dear and important to us as individuals. They literally can determine our success or heaven forbid our failures. The decision you made Officer Cook, to become a police officer was a very terrific one indeed as you served your community was distinction and honor and gave to your family a lot of pride to be forever grateful for. The citizens you served can always look back at your life, Officer Cook, those who still remember you back in the day in the Central District when you described among their best officers. This testimonial is your legacy and for this you'll never be forgotten. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

May 6, 2013

Forgiveness is choosing to release the hurt and the desire to pay back the person(s) who hurt us. We must remember to be true to our faith, not our feelings. And you were true in faith until your last watch, Officer Cook. This is a lesson you taught us long ago. Sometimes in law enforcement, a person's feelings may get hurt, but if it came down to their feelings or beings getting hurt, they would select the first choice. Officers always have to have the welfare of a person at stake first and then worry about their feelings. You were this type of officer, always putting others ahead of yourself and this is what denotes a hero such as yourself. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

May 6, 2013

Slow me down, Lord. Ease the pounding of my heart by the quieting of my mind. Steady my hurried pace with a vision of the eternal reach of time. Give me, amid the confusion of the day, the calmness of the everlasting hills. Break the tensions of my nerves and muscles with the soothing music of the singing streams that live in my memory. Teach me the art of taking minute vacations-of slowing down to look at a flower, to chat with a friend, to pat a dog, to smile at a child, to read a few lines from a good book. Slow me down, Lord and inspire me to send my roots deep into the soil of life's enduring values, that I may grow toward my greater destiny. Remind me each day that the race is not always to the swift; that there is more to life than increasing its speed. Let me look upward to the towering oak and know it grew great and strong because it grew slowly and well. Exactly as you lived your life, Officer Cook, from your birth until the final call you answered. You and Karen placed your faith at the front of door and as you left for work each day, you trusted in the Lord to see you through. He saw you through and needed you to be among His most loyal and trusted angels. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S.Davis

May 5, 2013

Listening is an art that must be cultivated. He who talks much cannot talk well, as it often shows a fine command of language to say nothing. When you needed to make a point to someone, Officer Cook, I'm sure you first as it is polite to do so listened and then constructively and with a positive demeanor encouraged others on how to handle a situation. The goal of every police officer is to prevent an escalation of a crisis and on May 16, 1979 you did exactly as instructed going by the book. You'll always be held in high esteem. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

May 5, 2013

God's advice is timeless. He knows our human tendencies and imperfections and offers us invaluable and practical help. We know Officer Cook that all of the advice you gave to other officers was priceless and your absence from your family and colleagues will always be very sorrowful. But you gave your best effort in trying to to resolve a crisis and let it be known that evil did not triumph that day nor will it ever come out on top. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

May 5, 2013

Unfortunately, there are officers today who desperately need a refresher course in anger management. Officer Cook, my neighbor, friend and hero, you were able to act precisely and recognized the ABCDs of anger and what it can do to an officer's career. You were able to acknowledge, to backtrack to the primary emotion, consider the cause and determine how to best deal with it. This made you an expert in the domestic violence field and your calming voice can still be heard this day. Rest in peace.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

May 4, 2013

I bow to God in great happiness, and I learn from where the suns and the children, my heart all borrow their light. I bow to the friend in deep reverence and discover a marvelous secret carried in the air: This whole universe is just blessed and divinely crazed as I, and just as lost in this wonderful Holy dance. My dear, after such a long, long journey, God has made another soul Free! Your beautiful soul, Officer Cook is floating above helping God steer your comrades in this world from ever present danger. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

May 4, 2013

The thing we tell of can never be found by seeking, yet only seekers find it. If we keep looking, we may find a reason one day in the near future why you were taken from our midst, Officer Cook. But for now, rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

May 4, 2013

The power of love is no less potent than that of modern medicine. In the right hands, each serves as its own instrument of God's healing. I still think, Officer Cook, after nearly thirty-four years after your tragic death that God has a way of healing and restoring faith to your loving family and friends for what they went through. The horrible agony of your loss and the life that you so faithfully lived through your character and devotion to duty on the force. If the best medicine could have revived you we would all have been very grateful. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S.Davis

May 4, 2013

In every snapshot of our lives, the obvious and the hidden sit side by side, awaiting only the sharpening of our inner lens to reveal its deepest secrets. During the course of your beloved life, Officer Cook, it is as clear as a bell that you were solely dedicated to helping protect Dade County, Florida citizens and making for a more peaceful and structured society. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

May 3, 2013

When love tries to restore its bond, there is no escaping the magnetic field it creates. How true, Officer Cook, your years on the Metro-Dade Police Department were spent not only protecting but garnering friendships and this is your everlasting legacy. Let your good natured soul keep watch in God's heaven above. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

May 1, 2013

To allow passion to drive you to your goal, stash gut consciousness away, put limited thinking aside and risk. This is what police officers such as yourself, Officer Cook perform for us on a daily basis. What's loved is never lost. The sacrifice you made on May 16, 1979 for us, my neighbor, friend and hero will never be relegated to the backburners. Your legacy demands that we all stand up. salute and take account and notice your bravery on our behalf. Rest in peace.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

April 30, 2013

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