Dateline: Bakersville , NC

Elden Monroe Cooke Sr., age 85, of Staggerweed Rd, Bakersville, NC went home to be with the Lord March 5, 2018 . He was a native of Mitchell County, NC and a son of the late Tulsa and Mae Hopson Cooke. He was a Veteran of the United States Navy where he obtained the rank of Chief Petty Officer and retired as an educator with the North Carolina School System in Western North Carolina .

He was a graduate of Bowman High School and East Tennessee University , and also attended UNCA Asheville, Boston College , and Wake Forest University . He was a member of Bakersville Masonic Lodge #357AF&AM, a shriner, and a 32 degree mason. He was also a member, deacon, and Sunday school teacher at Calvary Baptist Church and a member of Bakersville Lions Club, Ruritan Club, and Cane Creek Community Club. Elden loved hunting, and his special dogs, Snowball and Nicki, and horse, Mack.

Survivors include;  three sons: Elden Monroe Cooke Jr. (Lisa), of Supply, NC, Gregory David Cooke, of Johnson City, TN, and Sam Cooke (Amy), of Gray, TN, six grandchildren, and six great grandchildren.

He was preceded in death in addition to his parents by his wife LeElla Cooke, and a brother Parnell Cook.

Funeral services will be held Friday, March 9, 2018 at 2:00PM in the chapel of Henline - Hughes Funeral Home with Shane Gunter, Monroe Cooke, and Daniel Whetstine officiating. Masonic rites will be conducted by Bakersville Masonic Lodge #357 AF&AM. The family will receive friends one hour prior to the service. Interment will follow at Cane Creek Cemetery with Sgt EL Randolph Chapter 57 DAV conducting Military Honors.

Memorials may be made to: Mountaineer Shrine Club, PO Box 726 , Bakersville , NC 28705 .

Henline - Hughes Funeral Home is assisting the Cooke Family.