Rev. Harrell Cook

Rev. Harrell E. Cook, age 90, of Saucier, went to be with the Lord on April 16, 2021.

He was preceded in death by his father, Gaston B. Cook; his mother, Annie L. Cook; a brother, James B. Cook; 2 sisters, Juanita B. Cook and Martha Houlton; and a great-grandson, Judson L. Ulmer.

Bro. Cook is survived by his loving wife of 70 years, Joyce Thomas Cook; 3 children, Harrell Cook, Jr., Teresa A. Ulmer (Rev. Jeffrey), and Tamera P. Farabee (Steven); 2 grandchildren, Holly Joy Wilson (Michael) and Rev. Jeremy Ulmer (Kasie); 5 great-grandchildren, Colby Wilson, Cannon Wilson, Jackson Ulmer, John Lowry Ulmer, and Georgia Hope Ulmer; brother-in-law, Lilborn Thomas (Sara); numerous nieces and nephews whom he loved dearly; and other friends that he has pastored throughout the years.

Bro. Cook was a native of Montgomery, AL, a former longtime resident of Ft. Myers, FL, and was a current resident of Saucier, MS.  He was a 1949 graduate of Southeastern Bible College and served the Assemblies of God Fellowship as a pastor for more than 50 years.  He enjoyed gardening and yard work, fishing, watching Atlanta Braves baseball, writing poetry, spending time with his family, and being a master joke teller.

Visitation will be on Thursday, April 22, 2021, from 12 pm – 1 pm at New Life Family Church, 362 Popps Ferry Road, Biloxi, MS 39531.  A Celebration of his life and service to the Lord will begin at 1 pm.  Interment will be in Floral Hills Memorial Gardens.

Memorials may be made to Backpack Blessings c/o New Life Family Church at www.NLFC.tv

The RIEMANN FAMILY FUNERAL HOME, Gulfport, is serving the family and online condolences may be offered at www.riemannfamily.com

Rev Harrell E Cook

Legacy of Ministry

In 1939, at the tender age of 9 years old, attending a tent revival in Montgomery, AL, Harrell gave is heart to the Lord and was “born again”.  Committed to his new life, he began attending First Assembly of God in Montgomery, AL. During a revival in 1944, at the age of 14, Harrell got the call of God on his life into ministry.  In his own words….”The altar was full, and with no other place to pray,  I crawled under a big fern that was in front of the pulpit and wept before the Lord.  When I left that church, sometime between midnight and one am, I knew that God had called me to preach the Gospel.”

And now begins his remarkable 76 years of ministry….

1944 - Youth Leader at Montgomery First Assembly

1945 - Assistant Chaplain Kilby Prison, a state penitentiary in Montgomery, AL - his words again;

“I went into the death chamber to witness the electric chair execution of a young man…. I prayed with him and soon he was in eternity. Being the first time that I had ever witnessed death, I was more determined to win the lost to Jesus.”

1944 – 1947 Evangelist (age 14-17)  He and 2 of his good friends, Vaudie Lambert & Jack Burdick,  began preaching all around Alabama;

Pinedale Assembly of God, Pineville, AL

Revival in the mountains of AL, near Sylacauga, AL

This is one brief example of the fire and determination to win souls for Christ….

At 15 years of age, he and his friend got to the mountains of AL only to find that there was no church building. They spent the next few days cutting down pine trees and chopping off the branches to make poles from which they built a crude frame structure, using the branches to make a roof.  Inside they put rows of railroad ties to serve as seats.  Someone donated a table to use for a pulpit.   Then they hung kerosene lanterns on the posts and they were ready to “have church”.  After 6 weeks of revival, 36 people were taken to the river to be baptized.

Methodist Church in Greenville, AL – Harrell and Jack rode a Greyhound bus where they slept on the wooden pews without blankets or pillows. With $4 left between them after their $3 bus tickets, they went and bought enough sardines and crackers to last them for their week of preaching.

1947 - Approval by the credentials committee for the Alabama District of the Assemblies of God for an Exhorters License.

1947 - at 17 he took a bus with $40 in his pocket to Waxahachie, TX to Southwestern Bible College to finish high school while simultaneously attending Bible College.  The first night on campus they had a big bonfire and get acquainted gathering and when it came time for him to introduce himself, he was nervous and when he attempted to tell everyone that he was from Alabama, it came out “AlaBOOMA” – his nickname of “BOOMA” followed him throughout his college days.

1948 - After his year at Southwestern, he completed high school and had enough college credits to be eligible for his 2nd year of Bible College.  He decided to transfer to Southeastern Bible Institute.  During his time a SEBI, he interned at a church in Lithia Springs, FL.

1949 – Pastor Cook graduated from SEBI and considered it one of the highlights of his life…it was the culmination of all the hard work and prayers that had brought him this far.

While a lot of the Class of ’49 graduates went into foreign missions, Harrell felt a deep heart calling to “home missions”.

1949 - Now a licensed minister at the age of 19, Pastor Cook again embarked into the unknown and headed to Ft Lauderdale, FL to establish and build a church, this would be his first of many throughout his ministry.  Harrell arrived in Ft Lauderdale by bus not knowing a single person there. The cheapest room that he could find was $7 and that was exactly how much money that he had in his pocket so he slept on the front steps of a large downtown church for several nights.  He met several Assembly of God families and they were delighted as they had been praying for someone to come to Ft Lauderdale and start an Assembly of God church.  These families offered him shelter and food while he went from dreaming to planting his first church.  His Uncle Tom Cook bought him a large tent, lighting, seating and a piano and for the 1st year that was ‘the church”.  The church eventually moved into a building and became First Assembly of God.

1950 - During a revival at First Assembly, on the 2nd night, a new family that had recently moved from Ft. Myers to Ft Lauderdale attended the service.  Joyce Thomas was a part of that family and as Harrell said, “She had the most beautiful brown eyes I had ever seen”.  After church that night, she went to eat with Harrell and the courtship began.  A lady in Pastor Cooks church had given him $50 to buy on old Plymouth car that ran well but didn’t have very good brakes.  The home that Joyce and her family lived in had a long driveway with a hedge along side it, so in order to slow the car down, he would run into the hedge….by the time that they were married…there was no hedge left. Harrell and Joyce were married a few days before Christmas in 1950.  Harrell was 20 and Joyce was 16.

1951 – At a General Council convention in Atlanta, Harrell met the Superintendent of the Appalachian District which covered Northern Virginia and West Virginia.  That region consisted of small coal mining towns and as he became aware of the tremendous poverty and great spiritual needs of the mountain people there, he began to lose sleep.  Soon he knew that God was calling them to leave their “good church” in Ft Lauderdale and go to West Virginia to be “mountain missionaries”.

1952 – Word Assembly of God, Squire, WV - they loaded up their 1939 Dodge and headed out on another “home missions” calling.

1953 – Harrell and Joyce’s first child was born, Harrell E Cook, Jr (Buddy)  in Montgomery, AL, Harrell’s home town.

1954 – East Hartford Assembly of God, East Hartford, CT - Joyce had family in Connecticut that they went to visit.  While there, the Lord put another burden on them to “plant” a church.  Several of Joyce’s family members were in the area and they helped Harrell start a “storefront” church that later moved into a city owned building (rent free) as the church had outgrown the storefront location.

3 significant events occurred in 1957 –

August 1st, Pastor Cook was given his credentials as a fully “Ordained” minister with the Assemblies of God Fellowship

August 29th, Harrell and Joyce’s 2nd child, Teresa (Terri) was born in Harford, CT.

September – The Cook’s returned to Florida, Ft Myers this time (Joyces hometown) to plant a new church.

1958 – Calvary Assembly of God, Tice, FL – again, Harrell and Joyce found a storefront to plant a church. It wasn’t long before they outgrew that location and built a small church with an attached parsonage.  And not long again before they had to build a bigger sanctuary.

1959 – Harrell and Joyce’s 3rd child Tamera (Tammi) was born in Ft. Myers, Fl

1964 – New Hope Assembly of God, Graceville, FL – Harrell accepted the offer to pastor the oldest church in NW FL est. in 1922.  Joyce also began singing in a trio and guest speaking all over the area.

1974 – LaBelle Assembly of God, LaBelle, FL – this would be the 4th church that Harrell planted and the 4th time that he used a “storefront” to do so.  As the church grew, they were able to purchase an existing church building. The church still meets there today.

1975/76 – Terri began attending Southeastern College in her dad’s footsteps, this is where she ‘met someone special” – in August of 1976 Harrell handed his daughters hand over to Rev. Jeff Ulmer and he gained another son.

1977 – Calvary Assembly of God, Columbus, GA – Harrell and Joyce moved to an established church in Columbus, GA as their 3rd child, Tammi began attending Southeastern College.

1980 – First Assembly of God, Greenwood, MS – this began Harrell’s ministry time in Mississippi where he would spend the remainder of his time, both preaching and enjoying his well deserved retirement.

1983 – Glad Tidings Assembly of God, Ocean Springs, MS – Pastor Cook had an opportunity to take a church on the MS Gulf Coast and he and Joyce were thrilled as it brought them closer to their beloved grandchildren Holly and Jeremy as Jeff and Terri were serving as youth pastors in nearby Biloxi.  This church was actually an independent church when they went there but Pastor Cook lead them into the Assembly of God fellowship while serving there.

1985 – 1990 Harvest Ministries, Ocean Springs, MS – during this season of ministry Harrell and Joyce began traveling and doing evangelistic work all over the United States.  Joyce had also become an ordained minister with the Assembly of God Fellowship and together they offered sound, bible based messages and inspirational singing.

1990 – New Covenant Assembly of God, Wiggins, MS – this would be the final brick and mortar church that the Cook’s pastored.  During his time in Wiggins, Pastor Cook had the honor of being president of the Stone County Ministerial Association, was a member of the Stone County Rotary Club, Chaplain at Stone County Hospital and Sectional Presbyter.

1997 – Pastor Cook celebrated 50 years in ministry with friends, family and many of those that he pastored over the years.

2001 – Pastor Harrell and Joyce Cook “officially” retire from full time ministry and move to their newly constructed home in Saucier, MS.

2021 – Pastor Harrell Cook gained his heavenly reward as he transitioned to his eternal home.

During these 20 years of “retirement” Pastor Cook continued to minister to everyone he had the opportunity to meet.  Even in his final days, when he was in the hospital for a short time, and with his failing mind, we would go to visit him and the nurses would tell us about how when they would go into his room to attend to him, he often asked if he could pray with them.  Sometimes those prayers would last for 20 minutes or more but they would always take whatever time needed to allow him to pray with them.  Just the week before he went home to the Lord, 2 hospice chaplain’s came to visit. They prayed with him and sang songs for him and it seemed as if he was not responding.  Right after they left, he made mom and her friend Carol come to his bedside to have “church” as he prayed and worshiped with them. One of his foundational beliefs in his words was – “Of all the things we can accomplish in life, if we can win one soul to Jesus, then our living has not been in vain.”