COOK, Gene "Harlin" - b. October 16, 1924 - d. March 21, 2010

[Marcia Moore]

Gene "Harlin" Cook, 85, a resident of Chanute, Kansas, formerly of Fredonia, Kansas, died Sunday, March 21, 2010, at Neosho Memorial Regional Medical Center in Chanute.  He was born October 16, 1924 in Roper, Kansas, the son of Jim and Georgie (Story) Cook.

Harlin was a 1942 graduate of Benedict High School.  On April 4, 1943, in Howard, Kansas, he married B. Maude Cummings.  She survives at their home.  The Cooks lived in Roper, Girard, Fort Scott, Springfield, Illinois, Manhattan, Olathe and Fredonia, before settling in Chanute.  Harlin was a farmer and dairyman as well as a Federal Crop Insurance director.  For more than 40 years, he has affectionately been known as the 'Clock Man,' repairing hundreds of clocks throughout the years.
   
He was a member of the First United Methodist Church in Fredonia and the National Association of Watch and Clock Collectors. He had also been a member of the Fredonia Jaycees and the Good SAMS camping club.
   
Survivors, in addition to his wife, Maude, include one son, Jerry Cook of Emporia, Kansas; one daughter, Diane Rhodes of Welch, Oklahoma; six grandchildren and ten great-grandchildren.  He was preceded in death by his parents, four brothers, one sister, and one son, J.R. Cook.
   
Graveside services will be held at 1:00 P.M. on Thursday, March 25, 2010 at the Maple Grove Cemetery near Roper, Kansas with Carl Thornton officiating.  The family will receive friends at Timmons Funeral Home, 510 N. 7th Street, Fredonia, Kansas on Wednesday, March 24, 2010,  from 5:00 - 7:00 P.M.    A memorial has been established in Harlin's name with the American Heart Association and may be sent to the funeral home.

Timmons Funeral Home, P.O. Box 168, Fredonia, KS 66736 is in charge of arrangements.