Mary Cook

Mary Elouise Cook, 78, of Shawnee, Kansas, passed away Saturday, Jan. 5, 2019, at her home.

A celebration of life will include a visitation from 9:30 to 11 a.m. with a service at 11 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 19, at Leawood Baptist Church, 8200 State Line Road, in Leawood, Kansas. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Johnson County Interfaith Hospitality Network (IHN), 6315 W. 110th St., Overland Park, KS 66211 or online at jocoihn.org. Mary had a servant’s heart and was a strong supporter of IHN.

Mary was born Feb. 14, 1940, in Orient in Adair County to Roy and Frances Krabiel. She was a 1957 graduate of Orient High School and attended Simpson College in Indianola, majoring in music.

On Aug. 9, 1959, Mary married Larry Cook in Orient. Mary’s life was devoted to making music. Her first church organist job was at the age of 11 at Orient United Methodist Church. She was the organist at various churches and retired after 30 years at Leawood Baptist Church. One of her highlights was playing the pipe organ at Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris as part of a choir tour throughout Europe. Mary was also the choral music accompanist for Shawnee Mission Northwest High School for 26 years.

Mary and Larry have lived in Creston, Council Bluffs, Ankeny, Des Moines, and most recently, resided in Shawnee, Kansas. She spent her winters in Palm Springs, California.

Mary is survived by her husband Larry Cook; two sons, Tony (Tina) Cook of Wichita, Kansas, and Jeff (Kim) Cook of Shawnee, Kansas; sister Dorothy (Jerry) Straks of Meadow Vista, California; grandchildren, Kaleb Gilmore, Michael Vielhauer, Michaela Evans and Kaitlyn Evans; niece Sarah Straks and nephew Mark (Becky) Straks.

Online condolences may be expressed at www.amosfamily.com. Arrangements are by The Amos Family Chapel of Shawnee, Kansas.