Richard Alan Cook '59
Richard A. Cook, of New York City and Pawling, NY, died on June 5, after a long illness. Dick was a forty-year resident of Port Washington, where he and his wife, Virginia, raised their three children.
He was a member of the St. Stephen’s Church, where he had served on the vestry, and was a past president of the Port Washington Community Chest. Dick was a member of the board of trustees of the Seaman’s Church Institute, on the board of directors of the Oratorio Society of New York, and on the board of governors of the General Society of Mechanics and Tradesmen of the City of New York.
Dick was born and raised in Mohawk, NY. He was an all Upstate New York football player in 1955. At Amherst, he earned a BA in English, played football, and was a member of Alpha Delta Phi. After Amherst, Dick served three years in the US Navy. After teaching English for one year at Manhasset High School, Dick worked at Chase Manhattan Bank and later for the Superintendent of Banks of New York. Subsequently, he joined East River Savings Bank from which he retired as executive vice president after twenty years.
At the time of his death, Dick was the chairman of the board of governors of the Hundred Year Association of New York, a non-profit founded in 1927 to recognize and reward dedication and service to the City of New York by businesses and organizations that have been in operation for a century or more and individuals who have devoted their lives to the city as city employees.
In later years, Dick moved into Manhattan and spent his weekends in Pawling, NY, where he had a second home. Pawling was a special place for Dick, where he spent time fishing, gardening and enjoyed the solitude of the countryside.
Dick is survived by his wife, Virginia, of Port Washington, NY, and Danbury, CT; their three children, daughters Julie Cook (Clark Wiegman) and Anne Cook, both of Seattle, WA, and son Peter Cook of Washington, DC; two grandchildren, Nate and Ella Wiegman; and his companion, Rhonda Barnat of New York, NY.
A funeral service was held for Dick at the Holy Trinity Episcopal Church in Pawling on June 9, with a memorial planned in New York City in the fall.
For information on the Hundred Year Association of New York, please see:
http://www.100yearassociation.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hundred_Year_Association_of_New_York
—John E. G. Bischof ’58