Family, Friends & Fellow Officers Remember...

An instant of pure love is more precious to God... than all other good works together, though it may seem as if nothing were done. The second people gravitated to you, Officer Cook, it was obvious they would take a liking to you and same by you to them. You were a breath of fresh air that we should have all inhaled. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

February 2, 2013

I wonder why it is we are not kinder than we are? How much the world needs it. How easily it is done. How instantaneously it acts. How infallibly it is remembered. How abundantly it pays itself back. I really wonder Officer Cook, how we can pay you back for giving your life? God has the answer. It's up to us to figure out how to. He knows the why, we just need to channel our energies in the proper way. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

February 2, 2013

The greatest thing... a person can do for his or her heavenly father is to be kind to some of His other children. You were kind to everyone and you and Karen would have made great parents because of your compassion. Everyone has a little child in them. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

February 2, 2013

Lord, help me to spread Your fragrance everywhere I go and may Your radiant light be visible through me. Your freshness and radiance is spread throughout the world, Officer Cook. We just need to be able to challenge ourselves as you so faithfully did everyday. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

February 2, 2013

So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets. Officer Cook, you lived the golden rule as did Karen, this is what made your lives together so special. I just wished you had more time to be with us. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero. Keep assisting others in this manner.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

February 2, 2013

Walk softly. Speak tenderly. Love fervently. You did all three of these Officer Cook and was steadfast in your beliefs. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero and help others to do what you were able to do during your lifetime.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

February 2, 2013

Let yours be a mind through which God thinks, a heart through which God loves, a voice through which God speaks, a hand through which God helps. All throughout your life this love and all the contributions you made to society and your community, Officer Cook always be spoken about in a most loving and humble way. You brought the best out of others, including your fellow officers. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

February 2, 2013

Kindness is tenderness, kindness is love... Kindness comes very close to the benevolence of God. Your thoughtfulness Officer Cook, is one of many characteristics that made you that special person. So endearing to all and you are missed very much this day and forever. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

February 2, 2013

Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them....Be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God has forgiven you. Officer Cook, you were a gentle soul to all those who knew you and you personified Our Creator's compassion. You were charming and captivating as well and the love you shared will always be there. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

February 2, 2013

I meant to say in this last reflection, Officer Cook, we hold your spirit in our hearts forever. Rest in peace.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

February 2, 2013

If there's something you need to say to your loved one, remember to say it lovingly, as if holding his heart in your hands. We heart your spirit, Officer Cook, forever in our hearts. You personified the loving and devoted son, brother, husband, uncle and great-uncle and your love still fills the homes of your dear and cherished family members. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

January 31, 2013

We desire many things and God offers us only one thing. He can offer us only one thing- Himself. He has nothing else to give. there is nothing else to give. You gave us Officer Cook, a multitude of cherished memories. There was nothing just ordinary about your performance. Again today, I read of an officer who used deadly force and was terminated from the force because he didn't have to. Poor judgment and lack of common sense. Even in dangerous moments common sense must be executed by all law enforcement officers. Caution too, must be taken. You carried out your skills with due diligence. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero. We are His creatures who have too give back everything, as God rents this to us during our lifetimes here in this world.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

January 31, 2013

God will generously provide all you need. then you will always have everything you need and plenty left over to share with others... Yes, you will be enriched in every way so that you can always be generous. As donors in your church and community, Officer Cook, you and Karen were truly blessed to give to help others and now you are reaping your reward for giving back to your community. I would like to someday be able to donate a plaque in your memory or even a building, I can't promise that unlike getting the cemetery to replace the replica if your badge that was taken by someone from your grave. The Officer William C. Cook Community Center in North Miami Beach, Florida would be a great place for socials and for people to hang around shooting hoops or for parties. There is a center in Miami Beach named for Detective Scott R. Rakow who was killed on duty back in 1988. I met his mother, a really nice lady as is your mother. Still wish I could meet her. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

January 31, 2013

God is every moment totally aware of each one of us. Totally aware in intense concentration and love.... No one passes through any area of life, happy or tragic, without the attention of God with him. That fateful day, May 16, 1979, God's attention was in trying to get you, Officer Cook and your fellow officers successfully beyond a dangerous situation. Five or six minutes of violence was all it took to undo a perfectly ordinary day, but yet how can we call any day just plain old ordinary. It's not. The lives of your family and others were changed irrevocably by an act of a person bent on living out his final minutes in this world. Police work is not just for an ordinary individual to undertake. It is years of thought provoking, mind boggling, hard physical training and the right mental attitude, all of these that you my neighbor, friend and hero were born with. It's just a crying shame that things happened the way they did, God does plan for all of us and an angel like yourself was called to ascend the ladder to God's pearly gates. Rest in peace and keep observing us as we travel through our journeys here, we call life.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

January 31, 2013

God is not only the answer to a thousand needs, He is the answer to a thousand wants. He is the fulfillment of our chief desire in all of life. For whether or not we've ever recognized it, what we desire is unfailing love. Oh, God, awake our souls to see- You are what we want, not just what we need. yes, our life's protection, but also our heart's affection. yes, our soul's salvation, but also our heart's exhilaration. Unfailing love. A love that will not let me go. I wished Officer Cook, God's love did not take you. But, in a sense His love for you was needed up in heaven to be with your beloved father, Charles. Now both of you, my neighbor, friend and hero can be together forever swapping stories about your lives that you both put on the line everyday. Our consolation is that the memories of you two fine gentlemen will be us to share with others until eternity. Rest in peace. As faithful servants our protections are now through your beloved souls watching over us.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

January 31, 2013

if God is not lost in our lives, if goodness is not lost in our lives, if memories are not lost in our lives, then we will have an easier time of finding our way to personal happiness. I know Officer Cook, you would want us to lead our lives in a constructive and productive atmosphere. It's the way, the only way you achieved greatness. You started off as a youngster and each step of your life was like a building block, until you reached the pinnacle and then your life took off and blossomed. You still had many more years ahead, but Our Creator had other plans for you and your sacrifice will never be forgotten. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero, along with your father, Charles and I will keep your beloved mother, Mrs. Julia Cook, in my thoughts and prayers.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

January 31, 2013

We prove ourselves by our purity, our understanding, our patience, our kindness, by God's holy spirit within us and by our sincere love. The accolades Officer Cook, mean something pretty special about the authenticity of your life. A gem of a police officer who was interested in justice the American Way, your spirit with us will be the legacy for others to take hold of. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

January 31, 2013

It is obvious what kind of life develops out of trying to get your own way all the time; repetitive, loveless, cheap relationships, emotional garbage, frenzied and joyless grabs for happiness...all consuming-yet-never satisfied wants; a brutal temper; an impotence to love or be loved; divided homes and divided lives;small-minded and lopsided pursuits... uncontrolled and uncontrollable addictions... I could go on... If you use your freedom this way, you will not inherit God's kingdom. But what happens when we live God's way? He brings gifts into our lives, much the same way that fruit appears in an orchard-things like affection for others, exuberance about life, serenity. We develop a willingness to stick with things, a sense of compassion in the heart and a conviction that a basic holiness permeates things and people. We find ourselves involved in loyal commitments, not needing to force our way in life, able to marshal and direct our energies wisely. As long as this may be Officer Cook, one has to bear in mind you were a beautiful and loving gentleman, a kind hearted soul who would do anything to enhance others lives. Now that you are in heaven resting in peace my neighbor, friend and hero, you can keep a close eye on what is going on down here on this earth. The world today has changed a lot since your tragic passing, you wouldn't believe. For what it is worth, let us hope all the changes are positive and people can lives their lives the way God intended for them to live. As a police officer, your job was to serve and protect the public with decorum and ethics, of which you so dearly excelled. You were able to take control of dilemmas by being even tempered and not letting your common sense run wild. You were the captain who could steady the ship and make things right. Your commitment was one of basic experience and being taciturn, unless you needed to address a problem. The legacy you created is for all to view and you will not be forgotten.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

January 30, 2013

Our goodness rests solely on the fact that God in His incomprehensible goodness has bestowed his love upon us. God does not love us because we are so valuable; we are valuable because God loves us. Officer Cook, you and Nancy were taught by your parents at an early age to respect everyone and as you matured and got older this way the characteristic you so exemplified never left you. Your calling was your value to us and your community you so loyally served. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

January 30, 2013

I am praying that you will put into action the generosity that comes from your faith as you understand and experience all the good things in God. You prayed Officer Cook for only good things to happen as did your wife, Karen. Your family was devout, the friends you became familiar with all loved being around you. You had a knack for lightening up the atmosphere. Absence makes the heart grow fonder and your absence from us makes us more aware that what you stood for, meant plenty to all who knew you. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

January 30, 2013

Love is an action-it means doing, serving, giving. If all the love you showed us could bring you, Officer Cook, back to us we would be elated to the max. But you were that deserving, caring and giving person who gave up your life so others could continue on in their pursuits. You would really be proud of your loving family, as they would be and are of you so help me God. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

January 30, 2013

A good deed is never lost, he who sows courtesy reaps friendship and he who plants kindness gathers love. A person reaps what they sow. And so, my neighbor, friend and beloved hero, Officer Cook, you planted the seeds so your family and its future generations will now have something exciting to go forward with. Your everlasting memory will surely serve them well in their endeavors. Rest in peace. God's keeping all the goodness you represented in this world and looking out after it as sure as he has you cradled in His loving embrace.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

January 30, 2013

All the beautiful sentiments in the world weigh less than a simple lovely action. For all the charm you brought to this world, Officer Cook, I still can't fathom a plausible reason why your life was taken. Yet the sacrifice you made on our behalf will never go away. The memories are still as numbing today as they were almost thirty-four years ago. Your life was one of synchronization and of rationale, where everything you set a goal to achieve was met. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

January 30, 2013

I left out a key word in another reflection and that was we. What could we have done so that no harm would come to you? True gratitude, like true love, must find expression in acts, not words. The grace under stress that you, Officer Cook, endured on your last watch, left quite an impression on me. To see a problem and to go to a scene not being mandated to go, shows me the value and caliber of police officer that you, Officer William C. Cook were. You did not pay lip service to those you protected, you actually when called upon, did something to bring a better outcome to the forefront. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

January 30, 2013

True love possesses the ability to see beyond. In that sense we might say that love has X-ray vision. It goes beyond mere words. It sees beneath the veneer. Love focuses on the soul. Love sees another's soul in great need of help and sets compassion to work. Your visual perception Officer Cook, was well beyond your age. The manner with which you honed in on a problem more often than not suggests, you were able to come to a peaceful outcome. Brevity in police work is frowned upon, so the kind nature of your being meant you were able to help others more than to hinder them. Rest in peace my neighbor, friend and hero.

Rabbi Lewis S. Davis

January 30, 2013