POINT PLEASANT — An inspiration to the community.

That’s how many will remember Lowell Cook.

Cook, 85, died Wednesday at Cornerstone Hospital in Huntington, leaving behind a loving family and a community in which he was passionately involved.

His wife, Arlene, said she was very proud of him.

“He loved the community, loved children and the schools,” she said.

Karen Bacon, Cook’s daughter, described her father as a very special man and said he dedicated his life to the community.

“He loved it. He was dedicated to improving the community and improving things for children and the church. He firmly believed in community, church and our children,” she said.

Cook’s son, Keith, agreed that his father’s dedication to the community was outstanding.

“He just believed that if you teach children right, then the future will be bright. He believed that if you volunteer and work for the community, everything will turn out right, and that if you want things to improve, you have to work for them,” he said.

And he certainly lived by that advice. Among the numerous groups for which Cook volunteered his time were the Mason County Fair Board, where he served as president for several years and was instrumental in starting the event that has grown to be West Virginia’s largest county fair. He was secretary of the Mason County Solid Waste Authority and served as a member of the Regional Resource Conservation and Development, Point Pleasant in Bloom Committee, Mason County Convention and Visitors Bureau and the local Fort Randolph Committee.

Carolin Harris, who worked with Cook on many local projects, described Cook as an inspiration to the community.

“No one will ever be able to fill his shoes,” Harris said. “Everything we did, he was there to back us up. He was such an inspiration, and he will really be missed.”

Those sentiments spanned from one community organization to another Wednesday evening as news of Cook’s passing spread.

“What a loss to Point Pleasant and Mason County,” said Brian Billings, first vice president of the Mason County Fair Board, who said it was Cook who first got him involved with the Mason County Fair.

But the fair wasn’t the only event Cook worked to promote. As Mason County Commissioner Rick Handley pointed out, Cook went above and beyond the call for community service.

“If it wasn’t for him and the late Delvin Simms, we wouldn’t have had the recycling center,” Handley said. “With all of the grants they applied for and received, there would have been nothing to show.

“He did a tremendous job in promoting recycling,” he added.

Handley went on to say that Cook was very much involved with activities in the church and the school system. In fact, Cook once served as superintendent of Mason County Schools.

“This is a huge loss,” Handley said. “It will take a lot to fill his shoes.”

Mr. Cook’s obituary appears in its entirety on page A3.