Eleanor Ann Cook

Eleanor Ann Cook

Walker

Eleanor Ann Cook, 91, of Walker, IA died Friday afternoon, October 11, 2024 at Hiawatha Hospice House, surrounded by her loving family. A Celebration of Life will be held at a later date. Murdoch Funeral Home & Cremation Service in Center Point, IA, assisted the family. Eleanor had been living at Garnett Place for two and a half years where she continued practicing her independence and privacy. She received meals and check-ins from staff. Her family would like to thank Garnett Place and the Hospice house for the care and comfort they provided.

Born Eleanor Ann Kuhn to Cecil and Clara (Michael) Kuhn on October 30, 1932 in Independence, IA. Eleanor grew up on the family farm NorthWest of Walker. She attended school in Rowley, IA where she was affectionately known as Ellie to classmates and where she excelled at high school basketball. Eleanor watched college sports and always tuned into the Olympics. Her grandkids share memories of the athleticism she passed on to them. Wiffle ball, badminton, and catch-the-kickball-as-it-rolls-off-the-roof were yard games she busied them with. She caught every ball that came her way, and, later, every dance and sport event her grandkids participated in.

Eleanor met her husband, Walter Dale Cook, and they secured their courtship at the dance hall in Independence, IA. They married on a Tuesday morning, September 10, 1957 and then made their home in Walker. It was there on Latham Street that they raised their four children, Reanna (Linda), Joanie, Paula, and Martin. Eleanor was a relentless documentarian throughout her life. She exercised this with her passions for community and efficiency as an active member of the Historical Society and as the City Clerk of Walker. Her clerical skills were first honed at the Buchanan County Courthouse in Independence. Eleanor captured her family in photos, writing, newspaper clippings and even height, as she recorded the growth of each grandchild. Her family now holds the treasures she wrote with her immaculate penmanship in a family diary.

Eleanor had a dedicated curiosity for knowledge. She invested daily in seeking and researching until she satisfied her wonder. Eleanor acted on her love of history through family genealogy, antiquing, and attending estate sales. She curated a special collection of glassware, linens, ceramics, and furniture for her own home and often found special pieces for loved ones. Eleanor was a skilled quilter and sewer, something she did regularly while wintering in Texas with her husband. She loved traveling. Family vacations are a pastime her children recall fondly. Time in her garden weeding, warm baked goods on the stove top, pan-fried burgers and hand cut fries, and braided hair before bed are memories she made with her hands that her family holds dear.

If you sat around a table with her you experienced her charm. She was always ready with a quick retort and an energetic smile. You knew she was especially amused when she leaned back and shot her laugh skyward. Her family will forever adore how simply they could coax laughter from her, she gifted it freely along with her generous sense of humor. Next to her warm and gentle nature was also a staunch sense of independence and self-determination, undoubtedly passed on to her from her mother. This legacy doesn’t stop with her, because though her kids and grandkids often begrudged her strong will, they too are full of pep and vinegar. Eleanor’s firm feet were built from the pains of life. In childhood, she survived the fire of her family home on the farm and, later, at age 16, the drowning of her older brother, Ronnie. As an adult, Eleanor lost her beloved daughter, Paula, in a car accident and 16 years later, in November 1997, suffered her own near-death car accident. This left her severely injured and required several months of recovery. Eleanor’s family was by her continuously through this, offering love and support just as she had given them throughout her life.

Eleanor was a constant source of concern and care for her family. They grieve her touch and warm smile but cherish the love she grounded them in. They will share this with each other as they bear the loss of her, their central light. Her well of unconditional love and patience never wavered. Each individual family member felt her investment in them and will carry that feeling with them throughout their lives.

Survivors include her daughters, Linda “ReAnna” (Gerald) Vandemere and Joanie (Marc) Mills; son, Martin (Carolyn) Cook; grandchildren, Aaron Schantz, Charles Mills, Rachel (Adam) Chrystal, Christen Mills, Jana (Mitch) Mahmens, and Hayley (Braxton) Lawrence; and great-grandchildren, Kalyn, Jevan and Jaron Mills, Briggs Chrystal, Blaire and Beau Mahmens, and Saylor Lawrence; and siblings, Louis, Russell, Cecil, Roger and Michael Kuhn, and Diane Boseck.

She was preceded in death by her parents, Cecil and Clara Kuhn; husband, Walter Cook; daughter, Paula Cook; and brothers, Ronnie and Philip Kuhn.

Please share a memory of Eleanor at www.murdochfuneralhome.com under obituaries.