Kenneth B. “Pogo” Cook, of Cheyenne, passed away on April 18, 2020. He was 68. Dad was born to Bryan F. and Rose E. Cook (Kreuzer) on January 30, 1952 in Cheyenne.
In 2009, he retired after 33 years from CLFP. In retirement my dad enjoyed spending time with friends and family, especially the greatest joys in his life, his grandchildren Madison and Jackson.
Dad loved his lifelong friends, who have shared many great stories with us over the last week. He also cherished the many players he coached over the years. I am both honored and humbled to have been his son.
Pogo is survived by his wife of 45 years, Connie; son, Bryan (Margie); sister Melissa (Jim) Lieske; and grandchildren, Madison and Jackson, all of Cheyenne. His favorite title in life was “Papa.” He is also survived by numerous nieces, nephews and cousins.
He was preceded in death by his parents and siblings, Constance Johnson and Michael Cook.
A Celebration of Life is planned for a later date.
In lieu of flowers, please make donations to a local food bank or the Cheyenne Office of Youth Alternatives.
Joan A. Shenefelt, 85, of Cheyenne, passed away April 21, 2020 at Davis Hospice. She was born December 2, 1934 in Cheyenne, Wyoming. She worked for the State of Wyoming for over 30 years where she retired. She was an avid sports fan and loved the Colorado Rockies. She also loved to read.
She was proceeded in death by her husband, Francis L. “Dusty” Shenefelt and brother John “Buster” Hartman. She is survived by her brother, Dwain (Pam) Hartman of Sun City, Arizona, three sons, Gale (Katie) Shenefelt, Gary (Lori) Shenefelt and Glenn (Kathy) Shenefelt, all of Cheyenne. She also has nine grandchildren and 17 great grandchildren.
There will be no services. The family is requesting if you would like to make a donation, you may do so to the Arthritis Foundation.
Helen (Ferguson) Landers, 98, went to be with her Lord on April 21,2020, at the Jaw Bone Gulch Ranch. She was born January 15,1922, to William W. and Maude Ferguson. She was in the third generation of a pioneer ranching family. A pioneer woman at heart, she was raised on the ranch established by her grandparents in 1878, and she spent the most of her life working on the ranch beside her husband and brother and raising her family .Following graduation from High School and Teacher Normal Training at Burns, Wyoming in 1944, she taught in several one room schools in western Laramie County including the Happy Jack School which now sits in Holiday Park
She met her husband Pete Landers, an Oklahoma cowboy at a country dance. They married on Oct 27,1944, and celebrated 50 years together. Helen was a school board trustee for the rural schools in at area for many years. She was long time 4-H Leader with the Crow Creek 4-H club, an active member of the WCTU, and the Laramie County Retired teachers.
She was a woman of Christian faith, a strong believer in prayer and a charter member of the Happy Jack Country Church.
Helen was very proud of her pioneer heritage and loved history, especially the early years of Wyoming. She leaves a legacy of volumes of Pete and her family histories and extensive research she did on the history of the early years of western Laramie County.
She is survived by daughter, Pat Hamil; sons, Monty Landers (Sandy), and Guy Landers (Kathy); grandchildren, Jamie Study (JR), Cody Hamil, Randi Landers, Shannon landers, Char Madden (Jason), Pak Landers (Megan) and Coke Landers (Molly), Lydia Harless (Brad), and Katie Landers Nimitz (Ben); twenty-one great grandchildren; five great-great grandchildren and her nephews and nieces, her sister and and brother-in-law, Jean Kitchaco and Virgil Landers.
Her husband; parents; and siblings, Carmen Christensen, Mary Devine, Sydney Cook and Bill Ferguson and son-in-law Jim Hamil proceeded in death.
Private family graveside services will be held. A celebration of her life will be held at a later date.
Besides her family, Helen touched the lives and was a great influence on many others, including some that consider her their second “Mom”. She will greatly missed by all who knew her.
Memorials in her memory may be made to Happy Jack County Church, 1055 Happy Jack Rd., Cheyenne, WY 82009.
Dad, William Henry Hehr, was born on Finley Street, in Upper Sandusky, Ohio, January 29th 1930, by a midwife. He had an older brother, Don, and an older sister, Lucille, and younger sister, Marilyn. His father, Carl Hehr was a house painter and his mother, Mary Gamber Hehr stayed home with her children and remodeled the different homes they lived in.
Dad went to church a lot with the family and sang in the choir, which probably started his musical career. He sang in school and learned to play the trumpet. He was also in a band. If you’ve been around Dad a lot you know he’s always humming and jingling the change in his pocket to the tune he’s humming. He doesn’t think anyone notices though, so we never said anything.
Over his lifetime, Dad, worked many long and hard hours doing things like running a paper route, during the War he worked in a bakery, in the Air Force he worked with jet airplanes and missiles, when he retired from the military he was a mechanic and finally went to work at NAPA and retired from there, twice.
He loved bikes, his motorcycles and cars that went fast and furious. When Nascar was on, you couldn’t talk to Dad. He was a semi-professional boxer and played trumpet. He played with Tommy Dorset and the Big Bands as a “trumpet for hire”.
Daddy’s life wasn’t complete until he met and married the love of his life, Phyllis Elaine Rutherford, they married in 1953, had two beautiful, wonderful daughter’s, Shelley Jean and me, Terry Elaine and two handsome, pretty terrific sons, Michael, who passed away March 19th, 2018 and Hans, who is our strength now. Grandkids and great grandkids, they know who they are and that Dad loved and accepted each and everyone for their special talents and the love, that was their legacy.
If you want to know who William Henry Hehr was…look into the eyes of his children and Grandchildren and his legacy lives on and on and on and on…
Daddy you are missed more than words can say, you are loved more than life. Daddy….YOU ARE OUR HERO!!!!!
Obituaries are a complimentary service of Cap City News. To submit an obit, email john@capcity.news.
