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CROUSE––Fifty years is a mighty long time.

And after half a century of service to the Crouse community and its fire department, Capt. Jerry Cook is celebrating. According to Crouse Volunteer Fire Department spokeswoman Michelle Poovey, April 16 will be Cook’s golden anniversary with the department. 

But he isn’t retiring just yet. Cook says he plans to stick around and keep volunteering as long as he can.

As Cook recalled, it was on April 12, 1974, that he married the former Elaine Black. Immediately after the wedding, his new father-in-law, Robert Black, a forest ranger and also a member of the Crouse VFD, told him to join the fire department.

Capt. Jerry Cook is joined here by his late wife, Elaine. 

“Or else he was going to kick my butt!” Cook jovially reminisced with a laugh this week.

He added that he knew that Black meant business, so he did as he said. Four days later, during its meeting night, Cook went straight up to the Crouse VFD and joined the organization.

A year later to the day, his son, Jason Cook, was born on April 16, 1975. When the younger Cook was old enough, he, too, joined the Crouse VFD on April 16, 1991, and he remains a volunteer member to this day. The late Mrs. Cook was also a member for a number of years, and the same is true now of their other son, Justin. 

Poovey revealed that Capt. Cook is still a very active volunteer member of the department.

“He’s one of our top six members in call volume response,” she added. “Jerry has been a captain for over half of his membership in the fire department. The Crouse VFD has been the only fire department he has ever been a member of, and he has never thought about joining any others. Jerry says he has been hooked from the time he has joined and has no plans of not responding to calls or stopping being a volunteer for Crouse. He plans on continuing to volunteer for the Crouse VFD until he is no longer able to or the Good Lord calls him home.”

“Responding to calls now is nothing like it used to be in the beginning,” said Cook, who has always lived within a mile of the station. 

In earlier days, when firefighters would hear the siren go off, they’d drive up to the station and call the fire center on the radio. Responders there would inform the firefighters of what the call was and then give them the address to which they needed to respond, as Poovey explained.

She added that everyone’s attitude toward Cook is one of profound gratitude.

“Everyone here at the Crouse VFD  is very blessed,” she said, “and thankful to have a very dedicated volunteer such as Jerry Cook to serve our community here in Crouse.”

Cook gets cooking in the kitchen of the Crouse Fire Department; and in his helmet and turn-out gear, Cook works the scene of a fire.

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