Forrest “Jerry” Cook, Sr., 90, of Valley, passed away on Aug. 23 at Bethany House in Auburn.

Born in May 1929 in Shawmut, son of Alford and Alice Cook; Mr. Cook grew up and spent his entire life in the Valley Area, residing in the Todd Addition area of  Shawmut for over 60 years. Graduating from West Point High School, he entered the military and served as a Captain in the U.S. Army in Europe in the 1950s. After completing his service, he returned to the Valley, where he was briefly associated with Cook & Sons Lumber Company before establishing his own contracting company where he was responsible for the excavation and grading of local sites such as the Spring Road Christian Church and the old Royal Theater, as well as hundreds of residential home sites throughout the area.  In the early 1970s, he joined Liberty National Insurance Company from which he retired in 1991. He was a long-serving member of the East Alabama Water Board, the Shawmut Lions Club, and was a member of the Shawmut First United Methodist Church and later the First Christian Church of Lanett.

Mr. Cook never retired working with various hobbies including his beloved Lee County farm, until his mid-80’s when he suffered a stroke which slowed- but did not stop him from embracing life. For the last few years, he has been a “favorite” resident of Lakewood Assisted Living where his sense of humor and good nature entertained both residents and staff alike.

Mr. Cook was preceded in death by his spouse of over 50 years, Carolyn Jones Cook; and is survived by two sons, Forrest Jerry Cook, Jr. and Karl Richard Cook, both of Birmingham; his sister-in-law, Jacquelyn Seymour Jones, of West Point; a number of nieces and nephews; and his “sidekick” pet, Tinkerbell the cat, who has been with him through all his transitions over the last eight years.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations should be made to Springwood School or the Chattahoochee Valley Humane Society.

Services will be held at Bluffton Funeral Services in Lanett on Aug. 27 at 1 p.m. EDT.

The Rev. David Bradshaw will officiate.

For online condolences please visit our website at www.blufftonfuneralservices.com.

Services have been entrusted to Bluffton Funeral Services, Lanett.