Gloria Jean Cook

Mrs. Gloria Jean Smith Cook, 80, a resident of Honoraville, Alabama, passed away peacefully at Opp Health & Rehabilitation on Tuesday, January 3rd, 2023. Funeral services for Jean will be held at 2 PM on Friday, January 6th, from the Chapel of Turners Funeral Home with Rev. John Massey officiating. Interment will follow in Cool Springs Cemetery with Turners Funeral Home of Luverne directing. The family will receive friends at the funeral home on Friday for one hour prior to the service.

Jean earned her Bachelor's in Education from Troy University and later her master's degree in the field from Auburn University Montgomery. She then went on to use her education throughout the area where she lived from Montgomery to Honoraville and Greenville. She enjoyed teaching both elementary and high school students, and she was always grateful for every chance she had to mold a better citizen for our society. Jean excelled at everything she did. She was a proud member of Delta Kappa Gamma Society which honored excellence amongst women who were teaching. In fact, she was so active in the group that she took on the responsibility of putting out their newsletter for many years. She was also a member of the Civil Air Patrol and attended Space Camp. In fact, she enjoyed the latter so much that she submitted her name for the position Reagan promised to a teacher on what was ultimately the doomed Challenger mission in 1986.

In her free time, Jean loved nothing more than expressing her creative side. She was an amazing painter and artist. She even ran her own business, the Wildwoods Art Studio, to promote her work. Over the years, many of her beautiful creations from ceramics to paintings wound up adorning the rooms and walls of many satisfied customers. Jean's talent also extended to her garden. She had an incredible green thumb and thoroughly enjoyed the hard work it required. She strategically planted her flower bushes, primarily her gorgeous azaleas and camellias that she added everywhere around her home to give bright pops of color for her guests, and herself, to enjoy. These activities helped to keep her active and always on the go, which is exactly how she liked it. She loved to travel and spend time at her little oasis on the river. On Saturdays in the Fall, she also got a kick out of cheering on her Auburn Tigers on the gridiron. Jean was also a dedicated member of Spring Creek Baptist Church where she served as librarian for several years. Above all, she was a devoted wife, mother, grandmother, sister, and aunt who treasured her family beyond measure and she will be missed just as much.

Jean was preceded in death by her husband, Charles Wesley Cook, and her parents, Aubrey Dean & Inella Lucas Smith. She is survived by her son, Wesley Cook; daughter-in-law, Sonia Cook; grandchildren, Emma Grace Cook and Ella Mae Cook; sister, Becky (Mike) Bledsoe; and nephews, Michael Bledsoe, Kenny Bledsoe, and Steven Bledsoe.

Active pallbearers will be James Merrett, John Onley, Kenny Bledsoe, Michael Bledsoe, Randall Duffell, and Jerry Perdue.