Paralee Cook

Paralee Castleberry Cook, lifelong resident of Greenburgh, passed away at home on Thursday, August 30, 2012. She was born September 13, 1939 to Elizabeth (Libby) and June (Cutty) Castleberry. Paralee was the eldest of three daughters; she graduated from the White Plains public school system and went to work for Grasslands Hospital. For many years Paralee worked as a health care professional, focused on health education and preventive services. Additionally, she worked for nearly thirty years, part-time, as a sales person and later, as an evening supervisor for the Journal News Classified Advertising Department. Once she retired from those two positions, she joined the Greenburgh Neighborhood Health Center as the Director of Human Resources.

After raising her five children, Paralee continued to work while attending Westchester Community College as a part time student and earning an Associate's Degree in Business Administration. Paralee was one of the first staff members of the Union Child Daycare Center serving as its parent coordinator for two years. She worked for several years as an advocate for child care funding and early childhood education. In addition to her employment, she was an active member of the Ridgeview Congregational Church for 36 years. There she held many positions including, Moderator and NY State Delegate to the UCC Conference.

But all of this is what she did, not who she was. Paralee was daughter, wife, mother, sister, aunt, cousin, and a best friend. She was the wise counsel, the confidant, the worker, the trusted one, the strong willed, the compassionate, the caring, and the most loving. She always treated you as if she had known you forever, even if you had just met and, soon after you met her, you became family. She was the best listener, with an uncanny ability to hear what you were saying and what you weren't saying. She believed that you should always show how you feel about someone. Consequenty, Paralee would give you what you needed, even when you didn't ask for it. Sometimes you didn't even realize it was what you needed until she gave it to you. She would always tell you what she thought, honestly, lovingly and sometimes bluntly"� but she always spoke her mind. All of us who know her, learned that she would tell you what she thought and then expect you to make your own decision. And, whether or not she agreed with you, she'd have your back.

A well-rounded person, Paralee was an avid football fan, reader and lover of Jazz. She shared these joys with her family and friends.

She is pre-deceased by her parents, her sister, Ruth Castleberry, and her sons, Bryan and Charles. She is survived by her husband of over 50 years, Charles Wendell Cook; her sister, June Castleberry; her children, Anita and Felton Gholston, Katherine Graham, Marc and Paula Cook , Woody Pascal and DonnaRenee Cook; her grandchildren, Ben, Malcolm, Avery, Maya, Olivia, Jeremiah, Markie, AJ; her great-grandson, Jaida; her nieces and nephews, Delores Castleberry and Stevie Harris, Debra Castleberry, Duane and Yesenia Castleberry, Sebastyan, Elyas, and Roderick Lewis; her aunts, Mary Shelton, Mildred Storms and Corrine Harris; closest cousin, Mary Ann Shelton; her sisters-in-law, Cora Jackson, Glenda Blake and Fanny Cook and a host of family and friends.

In lieu of flowers, the family would appreciate donations to either Diabetes Education, the American Heart Association, or NY Organ Donors.