Laverne Cook

LaVerne E. Cook, age 97, of Decorah, IA, died Sunday, September 5, 2021 at Good Samaritan Society in Postville, IA. Memorial Services will be held at 1:00 p.m. Monday, October 11, 2021, at Fjelstul Funeral Home in Decorah, with Rev. Hyeunmee Kang officiating. Visitation will be from 11:30 am - 1:00 pm Monday at Fjelstul Funeral Home. Masks are required. LaVerne was born in Castalia, Iowa on April 6, 1924, the son of Perlie and Lydia (Linderbaum) Cook. He lived his entire life in Decorah and the surrounding area. LaVerne served in the Army during WWII from 1944 – 1946. He did his basic training at Camp Claiborne, LA. He served with the 695 Engineer Base Equipment Company as a construction machine operator achieving the rank of Tech 4(Sergeant). He operated D-7 and D-8 bulldozers, road graders, road rollers and gasoline and diesel-powered cranes used in the construction and repair of roads and airfields. His company was in the campaigns in Dutch New Guinea and Luzon, Philippines during World War II. He met his wife to be, Marian Dunning, before entering the service. She wrote to him during his deployment. Her letters were the highlight of his days in the service. After the war, LaVerne returned to the Decorah area. A year after he returned, he and Marian were united in marriage on April 29, 1947, at the Cresco United Methodist Church. They were blessed with five children: Mary, Donald, Jaleen, Robert, and Paul. They were married 68 years before Marian’s passing in 2016. LaVerne operated Cook’s Television and Radio Repair for many years in Decorah. LaVerne and Marian could be seen out on their morning walk for 25+ years. He also enjoyed sitting on the porch watching people go by. In April 2012 he had the great pleasure to go to Washington DC on the Quad City Honor Flight. This trip was something he talked about for years after. Family time included trips camping and fishing with family and relatives. He loved to play cards and was always ready to sit down and deal out the hands. There was always laughter and fun times during these card games around the dining room table. He was preceded in death by his wife Marian, parents, brothers Merle and Duane and wife Marilyn, brother-in-law Leslie Dunning and brother in-law and sister-in-law Lawrence and Evelyn (Dunning) Linderbaum. LaVerne is survived by his five children: Mary (Eric) Olson of Sioux Falls, SD, Donald (Jeanne) of Bettendorf, IA, Jaleen (Larry) Melaas of Savanna, IL, Robert (Martha) Cook of Waukee, IA, and Paul (Patricia) Cook of Summerville, SC, 13 grandchildren and 14 great grandchildren. Interment will be held on Tuesday, October 12, 2021, at the Rock Island National Cemetery, Rock Island, IL. A procession to the National Cemetery will leave Halligan-McCabe DeVries Funeral Home, 614 N Main Street, Davenport, IA at 10:30 am. Military honors will be given. In lieu of flowers memorials may be directed to the Honor Flight of the Quad Cities, c/o Ridgecrest Village, 4130 Northwest Blvd, Davenport, IA 52806. Please make checks payable to Honor Flight of the Quad Cities. The family would like to thank the many families and friends that visited LaVerne while he lived in Postville. We would also like to thank those who became his family when he moved to The Glen and the Good Samaritan Society. Your compassion and care are greatly appreciated.