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Clarence Cooke distinguished son of Port Royal laid to rest
Life Tributes
Life Tributes
Sunday, April 03, 2011
Well known international football referee,, Jamaica Fire Brigade officer and businessman, Clarence Cook died recently at the age of 81, and a thanksgiving service for him was held last Saturday at St Peter's Church, Port Royal.
Cook was considered by many as a solid referee. He was the most outstanding referee in the Major League in 1979-80 and a FIFA referee from 1978-1981.
The late Clarence Cooke
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In 1977 he won the Jamaica Football Referees Association's 20-year service award and was top referee in the Craven A National Premiere League in the 1987-1988 season.
In 1990 Cook received the International Service Award as a retired FIFA and in1995 the Master League Golden Whistle for his outstanding contribution to football. He won the Jamaica Football Association's honour for his outstanding and dedicated contribution to the development of football in 2003 and in 2005, the Jamaica Master/Masters Celebrities recognition for service in the Bell/Zadie Memorial tournament. He also served as vice-president of the Jamaica Football Referees' Association.
Cook served as an officer in the Fire Brigade for 21 years. He founded the Clarebarb Consultancy which provided fire safety training, sales, and the sale of fire safety equipment for more than 40 years.
A distinguished son of Port Royal, he was an integral part of the Port Royal Brotherhood for over 40 years.
Reflecting on Cooke's life at the thanksgiving service for him, his granddaughter, Gizzatta Cook--Johnson said her grandfather had a intimate knowledge of the history of Port Royal.
She said he could recount many things which were not recorded including the story of how Admiral Nelson used the canons as an escaped hatch in hidden rooms in Fort Charles. She described him as astute, professional, wise, humorous, eloquent and erudite. She said Cooke could recite poetry and he had a poem for every situation.
One of his favorite verses, she said, was: 'There is so much bad in the best of us, and so much good in the worst of us that it hardly behoves any of us to speak ill of the rest of us.'
In his tribute, Horace Lewis, who served as president of the Jamaica Football Referees for 11 years and was a close associate of Cooke, said that Cooke was not just a good referee but also a good man and dedicated stalwart. What he lacked in movement on the field, he made up with a calm, no-nonsense, authoritative look. He earned the respect and unquestioned compliance from players.
Lewis recalled some of the witty remarks by Cooke.
Once a player, dissatisfied by a decision by Cooke said "Mr referee, you need glasses,"
Once a player, dissatisfied by a decision by Cooke said "Mr referee, you need glasses,"
Cooke calmly replied:
"If you put on your glasses, you will make some good passes."
"If you put on your glasses, you will make some good passes."
On another occasion at the UWI a team was late and the captain approached the match officials to a request for a grace period. Cooke's response was: Son, if you do not now appear, we will all disappear.
Life, Cooke once said, is not about having opportunities, but being able to use them wisely.
He did.
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