Our dearly beloved, beautiful mother, grandmother, sister, aunt, cousin, daughter, and friend Katherine Randall Cook, was born on a hot and humid day on August 2, 1931, in Toano, VA, to Willie Earl Randall and Eliza Jane Shepphard Randall. She was the eldest daughter of fourteen children, born after her eldest brother William Randall and Earl Randall. She helped her mother raise her siblings.
She was a devoted Christian and member of the Chickahominy Baptist Church in Toano, VA, where she was baptized at the age of 10.
As a child, she enjoyed reading, fishing, cooking, and playing with her siblings, cousins, and friends.
Katherine met her future husband, Issac Cook, while attending church services. Issac, the musical choir leader, was very impressed by her beauty and intelligence. Isaac and Katherine were wed on November 23, 1949. This union produced two loving sons, Keith and Eric. When her husband began working in Maryland, Katherine went to business school and learned how to type, take shorthand, and take dictation. She eventually found a job in Washington DC, at the United States Department of Agriculture/FDA, and later, the U.S. Department of Defense, retiring in 1987.
Around 1976, Katherine and her sister Isabelle came up with the idea of a family reunion at the Jamestown 4H campsite and included members of the Shepperd and Randall families. The Saturday cookout was always the highlight of the summer for many, and this year will mark the 50th year anniversary of this event.
Katherine attended the Episcopal Church of the Atonement in Washington, DC, for over fifty years. Every night (including the week before the Lord called her home…), she was on the Evening Prayer call. Mrs. Cook was a founding member of the Mother’s Club, which later became St. Clare’s Guild, but more importantly, as noted by one mourner, “she loved Jesus and read the word of God daily”. Katherine was a very devout Christian woman and very thankful for all the love she received from her family and friends. She would often say, “I have been so very blessed by so many Earth Angels”. She encouraged all of her loved ones to be the best they can be. She is a shining star, highly blessed, and extremely favored. May she enjoy her eternal rest and rest well in paradise.
Preceding her in transition are her mother, Eliza Jane Randall; father, Willie Earl Randall Sr.; her husband, Isaac Cook; siblings: William Randall, Willie Earl Randall Jr., Emanuel Randall, Pearl Lee Meekins, and Isabelle Berkley.
She leaves to cherish her memories her sons, Keith Cook of Louisville, KY and Eric Cook (Jean) of Upper Marlboro, MD; granddaughter Erica Cook of Hampton, VA; sisters, Louise Dancy of Newark, DE, Dora Kinchen (Rudolph) of New Castle, DE, and Muneerah Abdul-Musawir (Taswir) of Hampton, VA; a host of nieces, nephews, and other relatives; bonus grandson, Brandon Womack of Bowie, MD; bonus sisters, Mary Royal of East Orange, NJ and Norma Holmes of East Orange, NJ; godson Kevin Curry; church family and friends.
A service to celebrate Katherine’s life will be held at noon on Saturday, June 6, 2026, at St. John Baptist Church, with a viewing beginning at 11:00 a.m. Interment will be at a later date at Cheltenham Veterans Cemetery, Cheltenham, Maryland.
In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation in Memory of Katherine Randall Cook to the American Cancer Society.
