Cecil Edward Clay Cook Jr.
- Published: November 7, 2024
Cecil Edward Clay Cook Jr. passed away Oct. 19, 2024, in San Marcos, Texas. In the words of his friend Crispin Pemberton Piggott Jr., “He was 87 years of age, and a sparkling intellect to his last day.”
Cecil’s parents, Cecil and Tippy Cook, met at Antioch College, and Cecil pointed out the rock formation in Glen Helen, where “they courted.” Cecil Jr., their oldest child of four, was born in Marietta, Georgia, on Aug. 5, 1937. His sisters are Ann, Sarah and Harriet. The family lived in Yellow Springs during Cecil’s childhood and he attended The Antioch School, where at age 12 his teacher was finally able to interest him in reading by baking cookies and not allowing him to eat any until he did his lesson. Cecil became an avid reader and had a large book collection.
Cecil went to Antioch College, where he met his first wife, Linda (Kelsey Jones). They had two children, Clay and Wendy, both now living in Texas. Cecil did graduate work in anthropology at Harvard and The London School of Economics. He was awarded a Woodrow Wilson Fellowship and a Dunforth Fellowship.
Cecil and Linda divorced, and Cecil met and married Shelly Barson. Shortly after their wedding, the couple went to a remote area of Brazil to live with and study the Nambiquara Indians. Cecil, an atheist, would participate with the Nambiquara in their spiritual practices, and it was in the forest that he had a spiritual awakening, believing that there is something beyond our physical existence. Both Linda and Shelly were Bahá’ís, and Cecil was attracted to Baha’u’llah’s teachings about the Oneness of Humanity and emphasis on striving for a peaceful world. He became a lifelong dedicated Bahá’í.
After Cecil and Shelly returned to Yellow Springs, they had one daughter, Tara, who now lives in Cape Town, South Africa. The family bought a farm in Bainbridge, Ohio, and Cecil would invite people to the farm to learn about an eco-friendly lifestyle. He traveled to developing countries in Asia, South America and Africa, working with USAID and the Peace Corps. He would meet with village people and offer them Appropriate Technology methods to solve issues by using their own manpower and sustainable resources.
Cecil and the family moved to Transkei, homeland of the Xhosa people, during South African apartheid. Cecil founded the Transkei Appropriate Technology Unit [TATU]. The family loved living in Africa, and after apartheid ended, they bought a farm near Stutterheim, South Africa. Local Africans took over the running of TATU. Cecil did similar work in other African and Asian countries, often doing the research with villagers, and working with Crispin Pemberton Piggott Jr. designing simple efficient stoves, brick-making devices, etc. Meanwhile, Shelly started the first integrated preschool in the area.
After Shelly’s death from cancer, Cecil continued working, and made trips back to America to visit relatives and friends, always including Yellow Springs.
A memorial celebration was held Thursday, Nov. 7, 2024 at the Yellow Springs Bahá’í Center.
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