Lawrence Gordon Cooke

Lawrence “Larry” G. Cooke, 79, of Ashland, passed away unexpectedly on Wednesday, June 19, 2024. The third of six children, he was born in November 1944 to Reginald “Rex” and Marjorie (Urich) Cooke in Shelby, Ohio, which is where he spent his youth. Larry graduated from Shelby High School and North Central Technical College.

His impeccable work ethic began in grade school/middle school where he worked as a vegetable boy and had a newspaper route while also participating in school athletics. In high school, he worked for his dad at Rex’s Sunoco. While attending NCTC, he worked at AMF in Shelby. After college, he went to work for Cooper-Bessemer in Mt. Vernon, Ohio. After which he worked at Innovations in Lexington, Ohio. In 1972, Larry moved to Ashland where he worked for Eagle Rubber and Kent Sporting Goods in New London, where among other things he developed a patent for a life preserver buckle. In 1976, he went to work at Johnson Bros. Rubber, as Vice-President of production. A year later, he became the General Manager and Co-Owner and helped in designing several proprietary pieces of equipment still used in their production process today. He eventually became sole owner/CEO.

Larry never hesitated to help anyone in need. Never one to make a fuss, he quietly contributed to many charitable foundations. Larry was always quick witted, loved practical jokes, and had an infectious laugh. He enjoyed hunting, fishing, golfing, playing card games and working on projects in his barn and the woods on his property. He also enjoyed making maple syrup and honey. Larry loved listening to oldies music and watching YouTube to continue learning new ideas and skills. Active in everything, he could ride motorcycles, scuba dive, fly ultralights and planes, pilot a boat, and operate farm equipment.

He is survived by two sisters, Jane (John) Jones and Kathy LaBarge; four daughters, Deborah (Ken) Bostic, Sandra (Greg) Graves, Rebecca (Mike) Kenny and Bethany (Trevor) Monaghan; grandchildren, Morgan (Drew) Copp, Megan (Christopher) Basinger, Bryan Bostic, David Graves and Jessica Graves; and three great-grandchildren.

In addition to his parents, Larry was preceded in death by his wife, Sherry Hettinger Cooke; brother, Rex “Rick” Cooke; sisters, Nancy Kolb and Janice Elias; brothers-in-law, Jim Kolb, Frank Elias, and John LaBarge; and nephew, Michael Eshelman.

A private family service will be observed. An avid dog lover, in lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Larry’s memory to the Ashland County Dog Warden, as well as the Ashland County Community Foundation or the Trump campaign.

Wappner Funeral Directors-Ashland is honored to serve the family.