Kathleen H. Cook
Kathy quietly passed away in the evening hours of October 16, 2011 at her home on the Balboa Peninsula. Her adoring husband remained by her side until the end.
She was born on November 20, 1926 in San Antonio, Texas to Kathleen and Will Hadden Sr. and was raised in Fort Stockton. She attended the School of Nursing at Baylor University in Dallas and later transferred to the University of New Mexico. While leaving a movie theater on Christmas day in 1946 she met an admirer, Herbert O. Cook Jr. Before long they were sweethearts and on August 12, 1947 they married in Fort Stockton, Texas. The newlyweds returned to the University where Kathy gained employment at the school infirmary while Herb played football and earned his degree.
In 1952 they moved to Long Beach, CA. As members of the Lakewood Presbyterian Church, Kathy became President of the Women’s Association. In 1962 they purchased their current home in Newport Beach where Kathy was a lively part of the community. She and her husband joined St. Andrews Presbyterian Church where they served together as deacons and she was a devoted member of the Covenant Group bible study. Kathy was an active tennis player, holding memberships at both the Peninsula Point Tennis Club and the John Wayne Tennis Club, where she, on occasion, played bridge with The Duke himself. She participated in a bridge group and quite often she set-up the card tables to host the ladies in her home. In 1972 she became a member of the Adoption Guild and was elected president in 1980 thereby presiding over the Roy Emerson 19th Tennis Tournament.
