James Frank Cook

July 1, 1937 - October 5, 2020

OBITUARY MATERIAL Frank Cook was born July 1, 1937, in Levy, Arkansas, the youngest of three sons born to Delmas Darrow Cook and Bertha Lou [Starrett] Cook. He grew up in rural Arkansas, graduating from Jacksonville High school in 1956. Frank chose to pursue a blue collar career in electronics in the aircraft industry, so moved to Greenville Texas, and began employment with Texas Engineering and Manufacturing Company, a large aircraft company with a number of government contracts. On a return visit to his rural neighborhood in Arkansas, he asked his high school buddy who that gal was he saw standing by the road waiting on the bus into Little Rock. His buddy replied "Why, that's Colette, one of the Goforth sisters." Frank said, "Hey, she grew up!" Frank began a year and a half long distance courtship of Colette, driving 6OO miles round trip every other weekend. Her parents agreed to their marriage after his promise that he would see to her graduation in Texas the next year. They were married in a small church ceremony in North Little Rock on July 13th, 1959. Thus began a lifelong journey together. Frank diligently pursued his career in electronic instrumentation to A class, with top secret status, interrupted only by his being drafted into the Army in December of 1960, serving his entire two years at Ft. Hood, Texas. The highlight of his nearly 20 year career in the aircraft industry was the two and a half years spent with his family in West Germany instructing the West German Navy personnel in the operation of the reconnaissance aircraft his company designed and built as part of a NATO contract. Both Frank and his work partner on that contract were specifically asked to accompany the aircraft to Germany to facilitate it's intended use. ln 1975, feeling the need for a career change, Frank moved his family to Morenci, Arizona where he helped set up an electronic stack monitoring system at Phelps Dodge Corporation, an international copper company. ln 1978, on a vacation trip to Idaho and Montana, Frank asked his wife if she'd consider moving to the mountains. She told him if he could find work she'd be happy to move again. Together they composed a functional resume and mailed it to all pertinent companies in Montana and Idaho. A year and a half later he was hired by Mountain States Energy, a Butte Montana company engaged in the development of instrumentation needed to measure the efficiency of clean coal technology using magnetohydrodynamics. He spent the rest of his working career at that worksite. A quadruple bypass in late 1997, after which his cardiac physician told him he'd have 5 or 6 good years led to his decision to retire in May of 1998, and make the most of those years by pursuing his beloved gun sports in earnest, developing his already considerable shooting skills in competition on a regional and national level. Those 5 or 6 years stretched to 20 years of serious competition. Frank was a charter life member of the United States Practical Shooting Association, no. CL-118. He held many Super Senior awards, the category awarded to those competitors over 60 years of age. He also took super senior honors at several World Speed Shooting Championships held in Montrose, Colorado. He did his own gunsmithing so he would know it was done right. When Frank began his shooting career after retirement, he came to the attention of the owners of Montana Gold Bullet Company, Norm and Jolene Bjelland, who approached him to represent Montana Gold at shooting matches. He was honored to do so, as he had been shooting Montana Gold bullets since before his retirement. He became a member of the Montana Gold Team, sporting their colors with his shooter nickname "Old Fossil" emblazoned in red on the back of his shooting shirts. Their support of him was most appreciated, allowing him to further pursue shooting on a national level. At his last national match, he was the only USPSA charter life member still shooting in national competitions. Frank also competed in fast draw competition, cowboy shoots, black powder shoots, and defensive pistol shoots when there was no USPSA sanctioned shooting available. He was a creditable trapshooter, though he could never find the time to diligently pursue that discipline. When ice and snow covered shooting ranges, Frank and his wife could be found dancing the weekend away to the John Fox Sound on the many great dance floors in southwest Montana. They helped teach social ballroom for several years, putting several hundred dancers through a six week free course to help folks enjoy dancing as a pastime Frank sailed through two battles with cancer during his retirement years, barely slowing his pace, but a third occurrence ended his time on earth on October 5th, 2020 at his home in Butte. Frank was preceded in death by both his parents, his two older brothers, John David and Delmas Jr., and an infant son. He is survived by his wife of over 61 years, two sons, James Franklin Cook of Freeland, Michigan, and Marshall Wayne Cook of Butte, Montana, former daughter-in-law Nancy Rae Anderson of East Jorden, Michigan, three grandchildren, granddaughter Jamie Lynn Roach, her husband Samuel and their children Sienna, Haden, Kellen and Harper, all of Rapid City Michigan, grandson Alex Cook of East Jordan, Michigan, and grandson Michael Wayne Cook of Amarillo, Texas, nephew, David Cook, his wife, Debbie of Greenville Texas and their children, and niece Martha Lou Reynolds, her husband Mike, and their children of Campbell, Texas. Many thanks to Frank's shooting partner Neal Hansen, with whom he travelled and competed over many years, including his escorting Frank to shoots the last several years when it became difficult for Frank to travel alone. He kept Frank going long after it would have been necessary to give up serious competition. Cremation has taken place and no services are planned at this time. Perhaps in the spring, when Covid- 19 is not such a serious concern, friends will gather at some place to be determined and remember the good times enjoyed in the company of this good man. Old Fossils never die, they just sink into the earth.