Melissa Ann Cooke, 34, of Plant City, died unexpectedly Feb. 28, 2015, at her home.
She was born April 2, 1980. Ms. Cooke attended the University of South Florida until she was diagnosed with a rare auto-immune disease, Goodpasture Syndrome, in January 2003. She battled this disease like a mighty warrior. Some of her greatest joys came from counseling others with this rare disease, and reaching out to those newly diagnosed and sharing her journey and successes. Some of her favorite moments were spending time coaching softball, listening to live music with friends, becoming an aunt, snuggling with her little dachshunds and telling jokes. Ms. Cooke was a person that was so amazing and generous of heart. She cared for people deeply. She loved watching and going to Bucs, Lightning and Rays games, and also rooted for the Florida Gators. Her courageous spirit will live within her family. She is truly inspirational and one of the toughest girls that they knew.
She is survived by her parents, Philip A. Cooke and Patricia A. Clark Cooke, of Plant City; sister, Mary A. Martel (John); nephews, Brody and Laurel; maternal grandmother, Joan Enriquez; paternal grandfather, Allen Cooke (Roz); and other aunts, uncles, cousins and relatives. Ms. Cooke’s parents would like to extend a special thank you to the team of doctors that helped them through the last 12 years: Dr. Robert Oliva, Dr. Azhar Malik, Dr. Keith Kapatkin, Dr. Rafael Martinez, Dr. Andrianus DeRuijter and all of their kind staff members. They would also like to recognize Mrs. Ahn, Ms. Marybeth and Ms. Denise from the Publix Pharmacy at Valrico Commons. You all gave her an enormous amount of kindness and strength.
A celebration of life will be held at 11 a.m. Saturday, March 14, at Wells Memorial Funeral Home. The family requests that in lieu of flowers, donations be sent to the Humane Society of Tampa Bay in Melissa’s honor: HumaneSocietyTampa.com. Online condolences may be made at WellsMemorial.com.