- Former U.S. Rep. Merrill Cook died at 79 in Salt Lake City.
- Cook served Utah's 2nd Congressional District from 1997 to 2001.
- A public memorial is set for July 18 at the Utah State Capitol.
SALT LAKE CITY — Former U.S. Rep. Merrill Cook has died at the age of 79, following a life devoted to his family, education, and politics, family members said.
Cook died peacefully in Salt Lake City on Monday, his son David Cook said in a press release Wednesday evening.
The former congressman is survived by his five children, 14 grandchildren, and three siblings.
Cook served in Utah's 2nd Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1997 to 2001.
Cook combined his entrepreneurial independence with civic service, often funding his own campaigns while vying for office.
During his time in Congress, Cook served on the House Banking Committee, the Space Science Subcommittee, and the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. He was instrumental in securing funding connected with the Salt Lake Olympic Games and immersed himself in the technical details of financial policy and legislative work.
Cook was born May 6, 1946, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, but he was raised near East High School in Salt Lake City, where he developed an early love of baseball, debate, and politics.
According to David Cook, his father's political ambitions began early — during a middle school election, his future wife, whom he had not yet met, voted against him.
Cook graduated from East High in 1964, before serving in the England London Mission of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He'd then go on to earn a bachelor's degree in economics from the University of Utah in 1969, and three years later, he got his MBA from Harvard Business School.
While attending the University of Utah, Merrill met Camille Sanders, his lifelong love. They married in the Salt Lake City Temple and moved to Boston, where Camille supported the family and pursued her studies in opera while Merrill earned his MBA.
He and his wife Camille returned to Salt Lake City in 1973, after giving birth to their first two children. Cook would later co-found Cook Slurry Company, a mining explosives manufacturer, with his father, where he served as president and CEO.
"My father was a force of nature in politics and in our family," David Cook said in a statement. "He had his rough edges, but his finest hour was caring for my mother during her long illness. I like to think of Jesus looking at his devotion and saying, 'I can work with that.'"
A public memorial service will be held at noon on July 18 on the grounds of the Utah State Capitol. Interment will take place at the Salt Lake City Cemetery in a private graveside service.
