COOKE, Melissa Ann, 34, of Plant City, FL passed away unexpectedly on February 28,2015 at her home. Born April 2, 1980 in Tampa, FL to Philip A. Cooke and Patricia A. Clark Cooke of Plant City. She had one sister, Mary A. Martel, and two loving dogs Peanut and Bertha. Melissa attended the University of South Florida until she was diagnosed with a rare auto-immune disease, Good Pastures Syndrome, in January of 2003. Melissa battled this disease like a mighty warrior and was always fighting. Some of her greatest joys came from counseling others with this rare disease and reaching out to those newly diagnosed and sharing her journey and successes.
Some of her favorite moments were spending time coaching softball, listening to live music with friends, becoming an Aunt to her little loves Brody and Laurel, snuggling with her little dachshunds and telling jokes. She also enjoyed the beach, the deer that would visit her backyard and loved chatting with friends ‘til all hours of the evening. Melissa was a person that was so amazing and generous of heart. She was a friend that was truly present. She had a contagious smile and her wicked sense of humor could make you laugh for hours. She was quick-witted, an amazing writer and a deep thinker. She loved fully and gave whole-heartedly. It was very common for Melissa to buy little gifts for everyone. She loved to surprise people with tokens of love. If you were her friend, then you knew and felt it. She immersed herself into her friendships and tried to be there to hold people up. This gave her purpose. Due to her illness, she became an incredible researcher. She would educate others on different things that would help bring them relief or questions to help ask their doctors. She cared for people deeply. Melissa was also a huge sports fan. She loved watching and going to the Bucs games and also rooted for the Florida Gators. She enjoyed Lightning hockey and Rays baseball games. She also loved fishing and palling around time with her Dad.
Her family is truly devastated by her passing and she was loved beyond measure. Her courageous spirit will live within them as they carry around the memory their beloved and sweet Melissa. She is truly inspirational and one of the toughest girls that we knew. She is survived by her parents, Philip A. Cooke and Patricia A. Clark Cooke of Plant City, her older sister Mary A. Martel and husband John Martel of West Palm Beach and their twins Brody and Laurel. Her maternal grandmother, Joan Enriquez of Plant City, her paternal grandfather Allen Cooke and his wife Roz of Seminole. She also has a large family of caring aunts, uncles, cousins and relatives.
We would also like to acknowledge her vast network of friends both nationally and internationally. Melissa’s parents would like to extend a special thank you to her team of doctors that helped them through the last 12 years: Dr. Robert Oliva, Dr. Azhar Malik, Dr. Keith Kapatkin, Dr. Rafael Martinez, Dr. Andrianus DeRuijter and all of their kind staff members. They would also like to recognize Mrs. Ahn, Ms. Marybeth and Ms. Denise from the Publix Pharmacy at Valrico Commons. You all gave her an enormous amount of kindness and strength.
Melissa’s Celebration of Life will be held on Saturday, March 14, 2015, 11am at Wells Memorial Funeral Home. The family requests that in lieu of flowers, donations be sent to the Humane Society of Tampa Bay in Melissa’s honor. HumaneSocietyTampa.com
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