Kalas Funeral Home & Crematory

United States Naval Academy Chapel

Captain Kevin William McCook, United States Navy, slipped the surly bonds of earth to touch the face of God on Tuesday, 11 February 2020. He is survived by Linda Irons McCook, his wife of 37 years, his sons Christopher (USNA ’07) and Brendan (Yale ’10), and their wives, Laura and Jen. He was the fourth of six children of Dr. & Mrs. T. Joseph McCook from Springfield and Marstons Mills, Massachusetts. His death follows a long career in the United States Navy and a shorter career in the information technology industry. 

He graduated from Classical High School in Springfield, Massachusetts with Varsity letters in swimming and crew, and subsequently accepted a Congressional nomination to the United States Naval Academy, where he reported on 28 June 1962. Following a serious eye injury incurred during a LASER research project, he graduated from the Naval Academy in 1966 with a degree in Electrical Engineering and accepted a commission into the United States Navy Supply Corps.

Captain McCook’s 27 years of Navy service included a 19-month in-country tour assigned to the U.S. Military Assistance Command, Vietnam (MACV). He returned to the United States in December 1968 having earned the Bronze Star Medal, a Joint Commendation Medal, the Navy Commendation Medal, the Navy Combat Action Ribbon, and four unit citations.

He next reported to Navy Supply School in Athens, Georgia teaching supply management to active duty Ensigns, reservists, and foreign officers.  He then moved on to Michigan State University to complete a 2-year MBA in 1 year before reporting to USS WICHITA (AOR-1) as supply officer.

He completed two more combat deployments on WICHITA before reporting to Naval Station Norfolk as the Supply Operation Officer for the Industrial Naval Air Station. He was then admitted to Armed Forces Staff College in Norfolk, Virginia for the Junior Course in Military Education.

Following Armed Forces Staff College, he spent the next two years as the Executive Officer of the Navy Cargo Handling and Port Group where he was responsible for deploying cargo teams worldwide. He then spent the next three years at Naval Supply Center Norfolk and while living in Virginia Beach as a Navy Commander, he met and later married the love of his life, Linda Irons McCook and their 37-year adventure began.

Upon completion of his tour at Naval Supply Center Norfolk, he reported with Linda as his new bride to Naval War College in Newport, Rhode Island where he simultaneously completed a second Master’s Degree in Foreign Policy at Salve Regina University. Adhering to the old Navy tradition that paybacks are hell, he then reported to the Naval Supply Systems Command in Washington, DC as the Navy Inventory Accuracy Crisis Manager.

He emerged from this tour having been selected for promotion and reported as the Force Supply Officer for Commander Fleet Air Mediterranean in May 1985. During this tour, both Kevin and Linda completed off-duty Masters Degrees in Education and Professional Development through Boston University.

He returned to Washington DC in August 1988 with Linda and their two new sons to lead Special Projects including the Navy Supply 2010 Study before being selected for Major Command as the Commanding Officer of Naval Supply Center Puget Sound – responsible for supporting Aviation, Surface, and Submarine activities in the Pacific Northwest. He was then also nominated as a Deputy Commander at Naval Supply System Command and spent the last six months of his command tour simultaneously filling the billets in Washington DC and Puget Sound, thus filling two flag officer billets at the same time.

He retired from the Navy on 1 December 1993 with the Bronze Star Medal, the Legion of Merit (3), the Meritorious Service Medal (2), the Joint Service Commendation Medal with Combat "V", Navy Commendation Medal, the Combat Action Ribbon, and a number of campaign and unit awards. Following his military retirement, he commenced a second career in the information technology industry where he spent 14 years as an IT Executive in Business Development and Sales.

During retirement, Kevin and Linda resided at their home in Vienna, Virginia and added a “beach house” on Selby Bay in Edgewater, Maryland. He was first struck by prostate cancer in 2003, and while continuing treatments and monitoring, he and Linda spent the next 16 years living life to the fullest while traveling extensively within the US and abroad.  His pace only slowed when a more vicious cancer evolved as small-cell carcinoma of the bladder in 2019. Both cancers would ultimately be attributable to combat exposure to Agent Orange in Vietnam many years earlier, but despite the awful nature of the disease, his indomitable spirit – and his love for family, friends, and life – continued unabated.

Captain Kevin McCook will be laid to rest at the United States Naval Academy columbarium with a memorial service at 1400 on Saint Patrick’s Day, Tuesday, 17 March 2020 at the Naval Academy Chapel. An Irish wake will follow at the Naval Academy Club with a robust “Celebration of Life.” To ensure that there is sufficient cheer on-hand for all to enjoy, the family requests the favor of an RSVP to  <a href="mailto: Kevin.McCook.Memorial@gmail.com" style="color:blue">Kevin.McCook.Memorial@gmail.com</a> by Monday, 9 March for those who plan to attend the wake.

For those interested in sharing stories about Kevin’s life, or sharing pictures, the family requests that they be e-mailed to <a href="mailto: Kevin.McCook.Memorial@gmail.com" style="color:blue">Kevin.McCook.Memorial@gmail.com</a> (Word or PDF files preferred) so that they can be compiled into a remembrance book.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Navy Supply Corps Foundation Scholarship Fund at
<a href="http://bit.ly/NSCFSF-McCook" style="color:blue">http://bit.ly/NSCFSF-McCook</a> (note “In memory of Kevin McCook” in the donation info box)
or by mail to: 
Navy Supply Corps Foundation
2061 Experiment Station Road
Suite 301, PMB 423
Watkinsville, GA 30677
(note “In memory of Kevin McCook” on check)
 

Condolences may be made by using the Memory Wall link on this page.

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