Meet Chris Cook

Chris grew up a couple blocks from the ocean in Spring Lake, New Jersey. He moved to Norfolk from Austin, Texas in late 1988 for his work.

He graduated from the University of Kentucky.

Chris retired in 2022 and although he has done a number of things in his lifetime, for the past twelve years he was a funeral director. He has found that of all the things he has done in the past, “Retirement is the best job ever!” When asked what made Chris want to become a master gardener, he said he wanted to join the group for many years but due to work demands, it was not possible. He started gardening with his parents, planting daffodil bulbs when he was five years old. By the early seventies, his parents had a National Wildlife Habitat sign proudly mounted on a cedar tree that his dad rescued in the early sixties from a local fire. Chris has always loved gardens, and has always had plants in his life. When he retired, joining the Norfolk Master Gardeners was his first priority and he was thrilled to join the Class of 2023.

Chris was impressed with the vast range of knowledge the leadership team presented throughout the course. He believes the entire team did a fantastic job of keeping the class on track, introducing new information, ideas and perspectives.

To attain his fifty hours Chris worked on a variety of MG projects including the Fred Heutte Square Foot Garden, the Significant Tree Program, Resilience, the Potager Garden at Norfolk Botanical Garden and home/helpline visits with Urban Ag. He is looking forward to volunteering at the Butterfly House this summer. 

Chris likes to interact with people. The Potager Garden and Urban Ag present many opportunities in that regard, but he plans on trying other MG projects as well.

When asked what his other interests are in addition to gardening, he credits his parents for instilling the belief that he should “Learn something new each day. There is so much to know, and so little time to discover it.” Because of that he has always had a broad range of interests in the biological and natural sciences, music and cooking.

Chris and his wife Paula are “empty nesters.”  Their daughter graduated from UVA and lives in Richmond.

When you see Chris, be sure to introduce yourself and welcome him to Norfolk Master Gardeners.