Ronald R. “Ron” Cook passed away Nov. 15, 2011, at Sacred Heart Medical Center from heart failure due to agent orange exposure.
     Ron was born March 20, 1947, in Shelton, Wash., to parents, Arthur “Buck” and Ethel Cook. He attended elementary school for four years in Grand Coulee and continued in Tonasket, where he graduated in 1965. Ron joined the Army in 1966 and proudly served with the 173rd Airborne Brigade, serving two tours in Vietnam. After his honorable discharge in 1969, he worked as a long-haul truck driver, did some logging and was a heavy equipment operator. He loved to camp and hunt. He also enjoyed watching the Zags, football games and Spokane Shock games.
     Ron is survived by his wife, Norma, of Spokane; twin sons, Corey (Brenda) Cook of Hermiston, Ore., and Casey (Lindsay) Cook of Fort Collins, Colo.; step-daughters, Renee Puryear (Brad) of Sandpoint, Idaho, and Diana Montecucco (John) of Cheney, Wash; mother, Ethel Cook of Tonasket; sister, Darlene Cook of Tonasket; and nine grandchildren.
     Ron was preceded in death by his father; brother, Phil Cook; and sister, Audrey Inlow of Tonasket.
     In honor of Ron, the Tonasket High School class of 1965 will have a memorial service for him at 1 p.m., Saturday, Feb. 25, at Tonasket Community Church.
     Memorials in Ron’s name are suggested to the Organ Transplant Foundation.