Edna H. Cook

📍 Chicago, Illinois
🕊️ Died after 1962

Edna H. Cook was an educator, social worker, and civic leader whose legacy helped shape community life in early 20th-century Chicago. A graduate of Howard University (Class of 1912), she was among the earliest initiates of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated. She served as faculty at Wilberforce University and later worked with the YWCA and Travelers’ Aid to support migrant women and youth arriving in Chicago.

Daughter of Rev. W. D. Cook, founder of the Community Church in Chicago, and Bertha Wolf Cook, a trained music educator and clubwoman, Edna inherited a tradition of service. She remained active in Christian service, alumni organizations, and local civic efforts through the 1960s.

She was preceded in death by her parents; her sister, Eloise C. Lee; niece Bertha Henrietta Lee; and nephew Benote Lee Jr. Edna’s work remains a testament to the strength of Black women’s leadership across education, religion, and social reform.

🕯️ “A life devoted to others leaves a light that never dims.”