Marie A. Cook
November 6, 1951
Marie Ann Cook, née Kalcich, was born on Nov. 6, 1951 in Rolla, Missouri. Her father, George Charles Kalcich, was a store manager for various JCPenney stores around the country and eventually in Phoenix, AZ, and her mother, Helen Mae (Mitchell) Kalcich, was an x-ray technician and nurse. Both her parents had served in the US armed forces during World War II, her father in the US Marine Corps and her mother in the US Navy.
Though born in Missouri, Marie’s parents eventually moved to be close to other family members in Phoenix, Arizona. Marie attended Washington High School, and in her senior year, her family hosted an exchange student, Zerrin, from Turkey, who would remain her life-long friend.
Marie attended Arizona State University where she studied nursing and would later complete a master’s degree program in nursing. She later attended the University of Utah to earn a certificate in psychiatric nursing, and she eventually would study to become a nurse practitioner.
Marie married David Spencer Cook of Needham, MA, in Phoenix in 1977 and worked at Good Samaritan Hospital. They had three children together, Brian Edward George Cook in 1978 and Tracy Michelle Cook in 1979 in Phoenix, and Kristin Marie Cook in 1985 in Elko, Nevada, where they later lived. Marie and David divorced in 1998, and Marie moved from Elko to Denver, Colorado.
Marie’s career as a nurse spanned decades, and included various stints in emergency medicine, in obstetrics, and later as a psych nurse. She worked at various hospitals in Arizona, Nevada, and Colorado in these areas. She eventually opened her own practice as an NP and therapist in Denver and remained in this role until her death. She was very dedicated to her patients, many of whom were with her for the duration of her practice.
Marie’s greatest hobby was gardening, and she had an excellent green thumb. She cultivated a large collection of plants in her Denver home, and she worked extensively in her outdoor garden. Every year her backyard deck was covered in hundreds of flowering plants and herbs.
She is survived by her son, Brian, and daughter, Tracy, and by her niece, Lydia. She was preceded in death by her parents and by her youngest daughter, Kristin.