Donald Gilbert Cook (August 9, 1934 – December 8, 1967) was a United States Marine Corps officer and a Medal of Honor recipient.

Biography

Donald Cook was born in Brooklyn, New York. He attended Xavier High School in New York City and St. Michael's College in Vermont. In 1956 he enlisted in the Marine Corps as a private but was quickly sent for officer training at the OCS in Quantico, Virginia. He was commissioned a

second lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until ...

in 1957. In 1960 he attended Army Language School in

Monterey, California Monterey (; es, Monterrey; Ohlone: ) is a city located in Monterey County on the southern edge of Monterey Bay on the U.S. state of California's Central Coast. Founded on June 3, 1770, it functioned as the capital of Alta California under bo ...

, studying Chinese and graduated near the top of his class. Lieutenant Cook was assigned to Camp H.M. Smith, Hawaii, in 1961 and was promoted to Captain March 1, 1962. He held a series of assignments in the Marine Corps and was sent to

South Vietnam South Vietnam, officially the Republic of Vietnam ( vi, Việt Nam Cộng hòa), was a state in Southeast Asia that existed from 1955 to 1975, the period when the southern portion of Vietnam was a member of the Western Bloc during part of th ...

in late 1964, where he served as an advisor to the Vietnamese Marine Division until he was wounded and captured by the Viet Cong several weeks later. He was held as a prisoner of war by the Viet Cong from December 31, 1964 until his death from malaria at age 33, December 8, 1967 and was buried in the jungle by his fellow prisoners. He was posthumously promoted from

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

to colonel. On February 26, 1980 he was officially declared dead and the Medal of Honor was presented to his wife by the Secretary of the Navy. His body was never recovered. An official memorial stone ( cenotaph) can be found in Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, VA, Memorial Section MI Lot 110.

Decorations

Medal of Honor citation

Citation for award of Medal of Honor:

Legacy

The United States Navy is named in his honor. Cook Hall at the Defense Language Institute Foreign Language Center, Presidio of Monterey, in Monterey, California, is named after Donald Cook, who graduated from the school's Chinese Mandarin course in May 1961. Cook Hall was dedicated in late 2014 and is the largest and most modern academic building of the DLIFLC campus. Colonel Donald G. Cook is honored with a 'Freedom Tree' on the Vermont State House lawn. Colonel Donald G. Cook Chapter 5

Disabled American Veterans The Disabled American Veterans (DAV) is an organization created in 1920 by World War I veterans for disabled military veterans of the United States Armed Forces that helps them and their families through various means. It was issued a federal ch ...

(DAV) of

Burlington, Vermont Burlington is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Vermont and the seat of Chittenden County. It is located south of the Canada–United States border and south of Montreal. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the population was 44,743. It ...

is named in his honor. Col. Donald G. Cook Chapter 5 DAV assists veterans in obtaining compensation for their service-connected disabilities, raises funds to support the DAV travel service for disabled veterans to the

White River Junction, Vermont White River Junction is an unincorporated village and census-designated place (CDP) in the New England town, town of Hartford, Vermont, Hartford in Windsor County, Vermont, Windsor County, Vermont, United States. The population was 2,528 at the 2 ...

Veterans Hospital, and generally serves the needs of disabled Veterans in Burlington and the surrounding areas. Saint Michael's College bestows the Colonel Donald G. Cook '56 Award to alumni for unselfish service to others. It is the College's most prestigious alumni award. The Colonel Donald G. Cook award is presented to a United States Marine Corps active duty (officer or enlisted) or Government Civilian intelligence professional to recognize professional excellence and exceptional dedication to duty in Marine Corps Intelligence. Annually presented, the award is sponsored by the National Military Intelligence Association (NMIA).

Notes

References

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Service Profile

External links

Arlington National Cemetery
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cook, Donald G. 1934 births 1967 deaths United States Marine Corps personnel of the Vietnam War American military personnel killed in the Vietnam War United States Marine Corps Medal of Honor recipients People from Brooklyn United States Marine Corps colonels Vietnam War prisoners of war Burials at Arlington National Cemetery Xavier High School (New York City) alumni Vietnam War recipients of the Medal of Honor Military personnel from New York City