Marshall County is mourning the loss of a fixture of the community. Will Cook passed away on February 17 after a long battle with multiple myeloma. Cook, 66, was the owner of the Flying C Rodeo Company, and was loved by many people inside and outside of Marshall County.
The United Professional Rodeo Association posted on Facebook to show how much they respected Cook, and to celebrate his memory. A representative of the company called Cook one of the “founding fathers of the UPRA.”
The UPRA also touched on how Cook handled everything with elegance.
“Will has battled illness for the past seven years with grace and humility determined to spend time with his wife, kids and grandkids,” UPRA stated.
Cook was named “Stock Contractor of the Year” a whopping seventeen times.
The Jerry Hill, President of the UPRA, spoke on the void that the loss of Cook left.
“Our hearts are broken, Will was the backbone of our organization,” Hill said. “Even though he didn’t attend many board meetings the past several years, he has always been just a phone call away for many of us, we are going to miss him terribly. We will celebrate his life and carry on the many decisions and plans Will has been a part of.”
Hill continued to speak of the void left by the UPRA’s loss.
“He loved bucking horses and spurs more than most, collected the hardware and considered it a great honor,” Hill said. “At every finals rodeo, he’s always told me, ‘I got a new bucket I need to fill with some new spurs.”
“Cook had a huge part in changing the semi-professional rodeo world, but what most people will remember Will for is his love of family, bucking horses, rodeo, smile, and his ability to tell a story better than most,” Hill continued. “I share all those things also; but mostly our relationship was about the business end of rodeo. We shared years of ideals making the association, committees, and rodeos better.”
“Will was as good of a friend as anyone could ask for,” Hill said of Cook. “We worked hard, we laughed even harder. If I had a complaint, he’d always say, “I’ll put my best man on it." If I said we may have a problem, he’d always say, “Well by God, it’s not a problem unless we say it’s a problem.” If I said I was concerned he’d say, “keep smiling, just keep smiling” and certainly one of my favorites, “we’ll sneak right through it.”