Nicholas Scott Cook, 19

PFC Nicholas Scott Cook, U.S. Army, died March 7, 2010, in Dab Sar, Konar Province, Afghanistan. Nick joined the Army in April of 2009, completing his basic training and jump school in Fort Benning, Ga. He was a proud member of The Rock 2nd Battalion (Airborne), 503rd Infantry, Task Force Mountain Warrior, 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team, Fort Ederly, Vicenza, Italy. You have left us way to soon but you are soaring above as only you could. Nick was born in Fresno, Calif., on Oct. 5, 1990, the son of Jeffery and Charlotte Cook. He joined his brother Christopher and sister Melody. He was raised in Hungry Horse by his grandparents Chuck and Kathy Taylor, going to Canyon Elementary, then on to Columbia Falls Junior High, and graduated from Columbia Falls High School in 2008. Nick was an athlete from a very early age; he played T-ball and baseball. He started wrestling at the age of 6 with Columbia Falls Little Guy Wrestling, continuing until he got too old for Little Guy Wrestling. He played one year of flag football with Kalispell Parks and Recreation; then he went on to Little Guy Football, playing with them until junior high; and then played for Columbia Falls Junior High. He also played for Columbia Falls High School until he sustained an injury. Nick loved the snow and had no desire to live where he could not snowboard. He lived and breathed snowboarding, even taking trips to Austria and the Alps to be able to shred while he was stationed in Italy. As a child he enjoyed playing with and showing his goats at the Flathead County Fair. He won several times in the pack goats and also the harness goats competition. This was something that he enjoyed doing with his grandfather. Nick was a typical boy growing up. He got himself into his fair share of trouble and he got himself out of trouble. He had a passion for shoes and he could talk his grandmother into paying twice the amount for a pair than she had intended. He was an expert at wrapping his grandma around his finger. The biggest thing he finagled out of her was her car. He had way too many friends to name them all, but once you were Nick s friend, you were his friend for life. A lot of his friends went back to his preschool days. Nick was preceded in death by his great-grandparents, Howard and Bessie Hatfield, and great-grandfathers, Charles E.L. Taylor; and John Mike Douhan. He is survived by his grandparents, Chuck and Kathy Taylor, of Hungry Horse; his mother, Charlotte Martin, and stepfather, Robert Martin, of Little Egg Harbor, N.J.; his father, Jeffery Cook, of Fresno, Calif.; uncle and aunt, Chuck and Beth Taylor, of Minot, N.D.; aunt and uncle, Nancy and Joe Davis, of Marion; brother, Christopher Taylor, of Hungry Horse; sister, Melody Cook-Sotelo, of Fresno; his little sister, Jacklynn Sisney, of Squaw Valley, Calif.; great-grandmother, Jane Louden, of Clovis, Calif.; his niece, Harmony Sotelo, and nephew, Caden Scott Sotelo, both of Fresno; cousins, Sandra and Therese Wallace, and Samantha, JT and Amanda Davis; and many more aunts, uncles and cousins. He will be leaves behind his pets, Cisco and Charley. Nick we love you and will see you in Heaven, our sweet young man. A visitation will be held from 1 to 8 p.m. on Friday, March 19, at the Columbia Mortuary in Columbia Falls. A funeral service will be held at 1 p.m. on Saturday, March 20, at St. Richard s Catholic Church in Columbia Falls. Burial with full military honors will follow at Woodlawn Cemetery in Columbia Falls.